TED Talks
Andreas Schleicher: Use data to build better schools
How can we measure what makes a school system work? Andreas Schleicher walks us through the PISA test, a global measurement that ranks countries against one another -- then uses that same data to help schools improve. Watch to find out...
TED Talks
TED: Let's launch a satellite to track a threatening greenhouse gas | Fred Krupp
When we talk about greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide gets the most attention -- but methane, which often escapes unseen from pipes and wells, has a far greater immediate impact on global warming. Environmentalist Fred Krupp has an idea to...
TED Talks
David Keith: A critical look at geoengineering against climate change
Environmental scientist David Keith proposes a cheap, effective, shocking means to address climate change: What if we injected a huge cloud of ash into the atmosphere to deflect sunlight and heat?
TED Talks
Irwin Redlener: How to survive a nuclear attack
The face of nuclear terror has changed since the Cold War, but disaster-medicine expert Irwin Redlener reminds us the threat is still real. He looks at some of history's farcical countermeasures and offers practical advice on how to...
TED Talks
Kristina Gjerde: Making law on the high seas
Kristina Gjerde studies the law of the high seas -- the 64 percent of our ocean that isn't protected by any national law at all. Gorgeous photos show the hidden worlds that Gjerde and other lawyers are working to protect from trawling...
TED Talks
Michael Anti: Behind the Great Firewall of China
Michael Anti (aka Jing Zhao) has been blogging from China for 12 years. Despite the control the central government has over the Internet -- "All the servers are in Beijing" -- he says that hundreds of millions of microbloggers are in...
TED Talks
Johan Rockström: Let the environment guide our development
Human growth has strained the earth's resources, but as Johan Rockström reminds us, our advances also give us the science to recognize this and change behavior. His research has found nine "planetary boundaries" that can guide us in...
TED Talks
Nicholas Negroponte: One Laptop per Child
Nicholas Negroponte, founder of the MIT Media Laboratory, describes how the One Laptop Per Child project will build and distribute the "$100 laptop."
TED Talks
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala: Aid versus trade
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the former finance minister of Nigeria, sums up four days of intense discussion on aid versus trade on the closing day of TEDGlobal 2007, and shares a personal story explaining her own commitment to this cause.
TED Talks
Erik Hersman: Reporting crisis via texting
At TEDU 2009, Erik Hersman presents the remarkable story of Ushahidi, a GoogleMap mashup that allowed Kenyans to report and track violence via cell phone texts following the 2008 elections, and has evolved to continue saving lives in...
TED Talks
Van Jones: The economic injustice of plastic
When we throw away our plastic trash, where does it go? In this hard-hitting talk, Van Jones shows us how our throwaway culture hits poor people and poor countries "first and worst," with consequences we all share no matter where we...
TED Talks
Leslie T. Chang: The voices of China's workers
In the ongoing debate about globalization, what's been missing is the voices of workers -- the millions of people who migrate to factories in China and other emerging countries to make goods sold all over the world. Reporter Leslie T....
TED Talks
TED: The secret to effective nonviolent resistance | Jamila Raqib
We're not going to end violence by telling people that it's morally wrong, says Jamila Raqib, executive director of the Albert einstein Institution. Instead, we must find alternative ways to conduct conflict that are equally powerful and...
TED Talks
David R. Dow: Lessons from death row inmates
What happens before a murder? In looking for ways to reduce death penalty cases, David R. Dow realized that a surprising number of death row inmates had similar biographies. In this talk he proposes a bold plan, one that prevents murders...
TED Talks
David Rothkopf: How fear drives American politics
Does it seem like Washington has no new ideas? Instead of looking to build the future, it sometimes feels like the US political establishment happily retreats into fear and willful ignorance. Journalist David Rothkopf lays out a few of...
TED Talks
TED: Why we need to imagine different futures | Anab Jain
Anab Jain brings the future to life, creating experiences where people can touch, see and feel the potential of the world we're creating. Do we want a world where intelligent machines patrol our streets, for instance, or where our...
TED Talks
TED: How fake news does real harm | Stephanie Busari
On April 14, 2014, the terrorist organization Boko Haram kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls from the town of Chibok, Nigeria. Around the world, the crime became epitomized by the slogan #BringBackOurGirls -- but in Nigeria, government...
TED Talks
Emma Belcher: 3 questions we should ask about nuclear weapons
There are more than 10,000 nuclear weapons in existence today, each one capable of causing immense destruction. Why don't we talk about this threat as much as some other major issues? In this practical talk, nuclear security expert Emma...
TED Talks
Nick Bostrom: A philosophical quest for our biggest problems
Oxford philosopher and transhumanist Nick Bostrom examines the future of humankind and asks whether we might alter the fundamental nature of humanity to solve our most intrinsic problems.
TED Talks
Paul Ewald: Can we domesticate germs?
Evolutionary biologist Paul Ewald drags us into the sewer to discuss germs. Why are some more harmful than others? How could we make the harmful ones benign? Searching for answers, he examines a disgusting, fascinating case: diarrhea.
TED Talks
Dayananda Saraswati: The profound journey of compassion
Swami Dayananda Saraswati unravels the parallel paths of personal development and attaining true compassion. He walks us through each step of self-realization, from helpless infancy to the fearless act of caring for others.
TED Talks
Mechai Viravaidya: How Mr. Condom made Thailand a better place for life and love
Thailand's "Mr. Condom," Mechai Viravaidya, retells the country's bold plan to raise its standard of living, starting in the 1970s. First step: population control. And that means a lot of frank, funny -- and very effective -- talk about...
TED Talks
Sonia Shah: 3 reasons we still haven’t gotten rid of malaria
We’ve known how to cure malaria since the 1600s, so why does the disease still kill hundreds of thousands every year? It’s more than just a problem of medicine, says journalist Sonia Shah. A look into the history of malaria reveals three...
TED Talks
Kimberley Motley: How I defend the rule of law
Every human deserves protection under their country’s laws — even when that law is forgotten or ignored. Sharing three cases from her international legal practice, Kimberley Motley, an American litigator practicing in Afghanistan and...