TED Talks
TED: The inside story of the Paris climate agreement | Christiana Figueres
What would you do if your job was to save the planet? When Christiana Figueres was tapped by the uN to lead the Paris climate conference (COP 21) in December 2015, she reacted the way many people would: she thought it would be impossible...
TED Talks
TED: The unexpected benefit of celebrating failure | Astro Teller
Great dreams aren't just visions, says Astro Teller, "They're visions coupled to strategies for making them real." The head of X (formerly Google X), Teller takes us inside the "moonshot factory," as it's called, where his team seeks to...
TED Talks
TED: The refugee crisis is a test of our character | David Miliband
Sixty-five million people were displaced from their homes by conflict and disaster in 2016. It's not just a crisis; it's a test of who we are and what we stand for, says David Miliband -- and each of us has a personal responsibility to...
TED Talks
TED: The case for engineering our food | Pamela Ronald
* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences. Pamela Ronald studies the genes that make plants more resistant to disease and stress. In an eye-opening talk, she...
TED Talks
TED: The future will be shaped by optimists | Kevin Kelly
Every great and difficult thing has required a strong sense of optimism, says editor and author Kevin Kelly, who believes that we have a moral obligation to be optimistic. Tracing humanity's progress throughout history, he's observed...
TED Talks
James Forbes: Compassion at the dinner table
Join Rev. James Forbes at the dinner table of his Southern childhood, where his mother and father taught him what compassion really means day to day -- sharing with those who need love.
TED Talks
Barry Schwartz: Using our practical wisdom
In an intimate talk, Barry Schwartz dives into the question "How do we do the right thing?" With help from collaborator Kenneth Sharpe, he shares stories that illustrate the difference between following the rules and truly choosing wisely.
TED Talks
Kitra Cahana: A glimpse of life on the road
As a young girl, photojournalist and TED Fellow Kitra Cahana dreamed about running away from home to live freely on the road. Now as an adult and self-proclaimed vagabond, she follows modern nomads into their homes -- boxcars, bus stops,...
TED Talks
TED: Our refugee system is failing. Here's how we can fix it | Alexander Betts
A million refugees arrived in europe this year, says Alexander Betts, and "our response, frankly, has been pathetic." Betts studies forced migration, the impossible choice for families between the camps, urban poverty and dangerous...
TED Talks
Jessica Jackley: Poverty, money -- and love
What do you think of people in poverty? Maybe what Jessica Jackley once did: "they" need "our" help, in the form of a few coins in a jar. The co-founder of Kiva.org talks about how her attitude changed -- and how her work with microloans...
TED Talks
TED: In praise of conflict | Jonathan Marks
Conflict is bad; compromise, consensus and collaboration are good -- or so we're told. Lawyer and bioethicist Jonathan Marks challenges this conventional wisdom, showing how governments can jeopardize public health, human rights and the...
TED Talks
Financial inclusion, the digital divide and other thoughts on the future of money | Ajay Banga
Roughly two billion people worldwide don't have access to banks or financial services like credit, insurance and investment -- or even a way to formally prove their identity. How do we bridge this divide? Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga sits...
TED Talks
Michael Pollan: A plant's-eye view
What if human consciousness isn't the end-all and be-all of Darwinism? What if we are all just pawns in corn's clever strategy game to rule the Earth? Author Michael Pollan asks us to see the world from a plant's-eye view.
TED Talks
Zeresenay Alemseged: The search for humanity's roots
Paleoanthropologist Zeresenay Alemseged looks for the roots of humanity in Ethiopia's badlands. Here he talks about finding the oldest skeleton of a humanoid child -- and how Africa holds the clues to our humanity.
TED Talks
Max Little: A test for Parkinson's with a phone call
Parkinson's disease affects 6.3 million people worldwide, causing weakness and tremors, but there's no objective way to detect it early on. Yet. Applied mathematician and TED Fellow Max Little is testing a simple, cheap tool that in...
TED Talks
Charmian Gooch: My wish: To launch a new era of openness in business
Anonymous companies protect corrupt individuals – from notorious drug cartel leaders to nefarious arms dealers – behind a shroud of mystery that makes it almost impossible to find and hold them responsible. But anti-corruption activist...
TED Talks
Annette Heuser: The 3 agencies with the power to make or break economies
The way we rate national economies is all wrong, says rating agency reformer Annette Heuser. With mysterious and obscure methods, three private US-based credit rating agencies wield immense power over national economies across the globe,...
TED Talks
TED: Did the global response to 9/11 make us safer? | Benedetta Berti
If we want sustainable, long-term security to be the norm in the world, it's time to radically rethink how we can achieve it, says TED Fellow and conflict researcher Benedetta Berti. In an eye-opening talk, Berti explains how building a...
TED Talks
Elizabeth Nyamayaro: An invitation to men who want a better world for women
Around the world, women still struggle for equality in basic matters like access to education, equal pay and the right to vote. But how to enlist everyone, men and women, as allies for change? Meet Elizabeth Nyamayaro, head of UN Women's...
TED Talks
Peter Singer: The why and how of effective altruism
If you're lucky enough to live without want, it's a natural impulse to be altruistic to others. But, asks philosopher Peter Singer, what's the most effective way to give? He talks through some surprising thought experiments to help you...
TED Talks
TED: Art made of the air we breathe | emily Parsons-Lord
emily Parsons-Lord re-creates air from distinct moments in earth's history -- from the clean, fresh-tasting air of the Carboniferous period to the soda-water air of the Great Dying to the heavy, toxic air of the future we're creating. By...
TED Talks
Alex Steffen: The route to a sustainable future
Worldchanging.com founder Alex Steffen argues that reducing humanity’s ecological footprint is incredibly vital now, as the western consumer lifestyle spreads to developing countries.
TED Talks
Richard Branson: Life at 30,000 feet
Richard Branson talks to TED's Chris Anderson about the ups and the downs of his career, from his multibillionaire success to his multiple near-death experiences -- and reveals some of his (very surprising) motivations.
TED Talks
Sugata Mitra: Kids can teach themselves
Speaking at LIFT 2007, Sugata Mitra talks about his Hole in the Wall project. Young kids in this project figured out how to use a PC on their own -- and then taught other kids. He asks, what else can children teach themselves?