The International House Global Voices Program is proud to present TEDxUChicago’s 2018 conference: Look Again. This conference will feature “ideas worth spreading” from voices in the Chicago community. Look Again aims to discover ways in which we can take a fresh approach to familiar topics. By re-framing, re-defining, and re-focusing, the event will present a new outlook and highlight issues that have been forgotten and cast aside. From STEM to the arts, the speakers will share what “looking again” means to them and how they have incorporated this mindset into their lives.

TEDxUChicago is a local, independently organized TEDx event held at the University of Chicago and organized by students at the University. Now into its seventh year, TEDxUChicago aims to provide, like TED, a platform where the smartest thinkers, greatest visionaries, and most fascinating teachers will be inspired and have the opportunity to inspire others. And that’s just the audience — just wait until you hear the speakers! In the past few years, the organization has brought over forty speakers of various backgrounds and fields to share their ideas on campus and spark discussions beyond the TEDx stage and event. 

Event is free and open to the public. Registration is required. Register here.

Speakers Biographies:

Rohini Dey is a leading restaurateur and the owner and founder of Vermilion. She is a proponent of Indian cuisine with a unique Latin twist, and an avid supporter of women. Before starting Vermilion–which has been named a “best new restaurant” by Travel + Leisure,USA TODAY, and Bon Appétit Magazine, among others–Rohini was a World Bank economist and a management consultant at McKinsey & Company. Rohini has gained worldwide acclaim for her work and has been featured in The New York Times, O, The Oprah Magazine, and The Wall Street Journal, among other leading publications. To redress the “gastro-ceiling” in her industry, she co-founded the James Beard Foundation Women in Culinary Leadership program.

Kelley Cambry is the co-creator of the Paige & Paxton Elementary STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) curriculum. Kelley and her team bring Paige & Paxton to life around the country through books, classroom curriculum and pop-up experiences (make-a-thons) in major cities in the U.S. to expose educators, kids and their parents to STEM education. Kelley was instrumental in leading nationally recognized STEM pipeline programs for girls and youth of color as one of the founding team members of the New York Chapter of Black Girls Code. She was also a lead member of the planning team for #YesWeCode youth hackathons, designed to expose middle and high school students to opportunities in computer science. After working with pipelining organizations, she realized the need to start STEM awareness and proficiency earlier in the funnel. 

Michal Dzitko is a Polish contemporary composer. Dzitko was born in Lublin, Poland, moved to Bedford, U.K. at thirteen, and then settled in the U.S. at The University of Chicago, studying Economics and Music. Dzitko comes from the classical tradition but stretches it to find its modern limits. His education in piano performance started in Poland where he studied at the National Institute of Music (PIM). He moved to Bedford, U.K. at the age of thirteen, and composed his first album – Bokeh – while attending high school there. Bokeh debuted in 2015, performed by Stephen Farr, director of music at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. Bokeh is a collection of modal post-minimalist music for organ. He is the laureate of the Tagore prize in piano performance and runner-up in the Ronald G. Pogorzelski and Lester D. Yankee prize in organ composition.

Dr. Susan Finkbeiner is a research scientist at the University of Chicago in the department of Ecology and Evolution, and she is also an international runway model. A native of Rockford, Illinois, Susan received her undergraduate degree in entomology from Cornell University, and earned her Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolution at the University of California, Irvine. She has spent the majority of her life dedicated to pursuing a career in science studying butterfly ecology and evolution, which has included a great deal of field research in the tropics and Amazon rainforest. In her free time, though, she trades in her lab coat and muddy field boots for 6-inch heels twice a year to walk in London Fashion Week to show off the latest fashion trends, and handles modeling gigs on the side when possible. Dealing with this “double life” as a scientist and model has helpedSusan break stereotypes that exist in both professions, while discovering creative ways to find overlap between the two. 

Dr. Stephen Wendel is a behavioral scientist who studies financial behavior and how digital products can help individuals manage their money more effectively. He serves as Head of Behavioral Science at Morningstar, where he leads a team of behavioral scientists and practitioners to conduct original research on saving and investment behavior. Stephen has authored two books on applied behavioral science, Designing for Behavior Change and Improving Employee Benefits, and founded the non-profit Action Design Network, educating the public on how to apply behavioral research to product development with monthly events in ten cities. He has two wonderful kids, who don’t care about behavioral science at all.

Jeremy Lindenfeld is a second-year creative writing major at The University of Chicago. He has been writing music for about 6 years, but has been writing good music for about 1. He tends to lean more towards artists like Bon Iver and Novo Amor in both his consuming and producing of music. As one of the board members of the RSO The Underground Collective, Jeremy is able to work with other talented artists that help him hone his craft. Though he does not expect to make a career of it, he hopes to continue making music for the rest of his life.

This event is co-sponsored by the International House Global Voices Program.