TEDxTemecula Hosts Online Watch Parties in Lieu of Annual Live Event
The Californer/10103163

TEMECULA, Calif. - Californer -- TEDxTemecula organizers announced it is taking its ninth annual event online, hosting public Watch Parties to debut six new talks over the course of several weeks. Representative of this year's unusual environment, where public live events have been cancelled world-wide due to COVID-19 restrictions, the organization chose the theme for its event "Against the Grain."

"Attendees in the Temecula Valley and beyond look forward to the event each year," said Jim McLaughlin, Organizer, TEDxTemecula. "Of course, we were disappointed not to have a live, public event in 2020, but TED's motto is Ideas Worth Spreading, and we strove to remain true to that in spite of the circumstances. Most years, the event is one day, while the legacy of these speakers and their ideas live forever."

Six speakers were selected in 2020 out of hundreds of applicants and spent weeks honing their TEDx talks, which were then recorded in the studio of TEDxTemecula partner JDS Video and Media Productions on September 26. The recorded talks will be presented to the public in free online events, one talk each week, beginning November 17, 2020. Attendees will then be invited to discuss the ideas presented in the talk with the speaker, the event host, and each other.

Each Watch Party broadcasts live at 7:00 pm PST. They are free and open to the public.*

Doyin Richards: November 17, 2020
A Black father of two multi-racial children, Richards is a best-selling author of a children's book on positive race relations and an activist for mental health and healthy masculinity, especially among people of color. A graduate of Union College in Schenectady, NY, Doyin holds a B.S. in Psychology.

Veronica Kirin: December 1, 2020
Anthropologist, author, and entrepreneur, Kirin conducts primary cultural research to learn from individuals' experience and apply lessons to the broader society. Her most recent research involves studying human responses to a pandemic, interviewing people from all over the world.

Heather Conklin: December 8, 2020
A political scientist and science communicator, Conklin is fascinated by the role of the skeptic in bridging divides, reducing polarization on issues of science, and creating opportunities for critical thinking and dialog in our society.

Daveed Gartenstein-Ross: December 15, 2020

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Chief Executive Officer, Valens Global, Gartenstein-Ross has worked on national-security issues related to violence and terrorism for 20+ years. He is pioneering the field of crisis architecture, developing practical ways that architecture can address social challenges. His unique background includes a Ph.D. in world politics from the Catholic University of America, a J.D. from the New York University School of Law, and a view of terrorism from the inside.

Dan Pettus: January 5, 2021
Professional photographer, now retired, Pettus weathered a complete market disruption in his own business and now sees this kind of major change as our new norm. His experience and observations in the field of photography provide insights for everyone dealing with disruption in their own lives and businesses.

Dr. Ernst von Schwarz: January 12, 2021
A triple board-certified internist, cardiologist, and heart transplant cardiologist, Dr. Schwarz is currently leading an investigation for stem-cell-based clinical trial studies to develop therapies for treatment of disease and prevention. His knowledge and research illuminate both the promise and the issues of stem-cell therapies.

"We're delighted to be able to present these wide-ranging and timely talks in a virtual format," says McLaughlin. "These are thought-provoking topics that we think our audience will find relevant to our region and their own lives."

Register for 2020 Watch Parties at https://bit.ly/2IkWC2L.

Learn more about TEDxTemecula and see past talks at www.tedxtemecula.com.

*These watch parties are not well-suited for children under the age of 12.

About TEDxTemecula
Since 2012, TEDxTemecula has brought dynamic speakers and performers to an engaged audience. With fresh ideas on technology, entertainment, design, health, education, the arts and more —TEDxTemecula speakers inspire, delight, and teach us about our past, present, and future. TEDx events are independent events operated under a license from TED. Local businessman and community advocate Jim McLaughlin is the licensee for TEDxTemecula and leads a team of volunteers to produce the conference each year. All TEDxTemecula talks are videotaped and posted on YouTube for the world to view. The best talks could get elevated to TED.com.

About TEDx, x = independently organized event
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized. (Subject to certain rules and regulations.)

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About TED
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, often in the form of short talks delivered by leading thinkers and doers. Many of these talks are given at TED conferences, intimate TED Salons and thousands of independently organized TEDx events around the world. Videos of these talks are made available, free, on TED.com and other platforms. Audio versions of TED Talks are published to TED Talks Daily, available on all podcast platforms.

TED's open and free initiatives for spreading ideas include TED.com, where new TED Talk videos are posted daily; TEDx, which licenses thousands of individuals and groups to host local, self-organized TED-style events around the world; the TED Fellows program, which selects innovators from around the globe to amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities; The Audacious Project, which surfaces and funds critical ideas that have the potential to impact millions of lives; TED Translate, which crowdsources the subtitling of TED Talks so that big ideas can spread across languages and borders; and the educational initiative TED-Ed. TED also offers TED@Work, (https://tedatwork.ted.com/)a program that reimagines TED Talks for workplace learning. TED also has a growing library of original podcasts, including The TED Interview (https://www.ted.com/podcasts/ted-interview) with Chris Anderson, WorkLife with Adam Grant (https://www.ted.com/podcasts/worklife), Pindrop (https://www.ted.com/podcasts/pindrop) and TEDxSHORTS (https://www.ted.com/podcasts/tedxshorts).

Follow TED on Twitter (http://twitter.com/TEDTalks), Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/TED), Instagram (https://instagram.com/ted) and on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/ted-conferences).