Inviting you to TEDxEustonSalon - Saturday April 6 2013

A few months have passed since the cold Saturday where we huddled at the Mermaid Centre and challenged conventional wisdom on Africa. We thank you again for your continued support, as without you, there would be no TEDxEuston!

Many of you have fed back to us that one year is too long to wait for another TEDxEuston! So in response to this we are putting together a slightly smaller, more intimate TEDxEustonSalon to continue the exciting conversations, challenge our minds, feed our soul and shake our bodies to some great music at an intimate, central London venue on the evening of the 6th of April.

TEDxEustonSalon will be exclusively for the incredibly gifted people that have already attended TEDxEuston to engage and fuel our community.

While the space might be smaller and the length of the day shorter, one thing we will never compromise on is the quality of our speakers. We invite you to join us and two amazing young African women, who will blow our mind away with their captivating talks in between wine and dinner at the beautiful Eight Club in Bank. 

The speakers on the evening are:

Chibundu Onuzo - author of ‘the Spider King’s daughter’ 

Chibundu Onuzo started writing novels and short stories at the age of 10 and less than a decade later, she became the youngest woman ever to be signed by Faber and Faber. Her debut novel, ‘The Spider King’s Daughter’ is part of a two-book deal with the publishing house and charts the unlikely relationship that develops between a poor street hawker and a sheltered rich girl who meet on the streets of Lagos. Since its release in March 2012, the book has been long-listed for the Desmond Elliott Prize for debut novelists and shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize for writers under 30. The Times describes the book as ‘a dark, tense, gripping first novel, peeling back layers of Nigerian society’ and The Observer calls it ‘an energetic thriller debut.’ In other parts of the world, the South Africa Times writes of Chibundu, “...kill me dead. This girl has skills.” She has been profiled on CNN, in The Observer and most recently, she made an appearance on BBC 1’s The One Show. Chibundu finished an undergraduate degree in History from King’s College London in 2012 and she is currently doing a Masters in Public Policy at UCL.

Jessica Horn – Women’s rights activist and founder of Akiiki Consulting and author of poetry collection “Speaking in Tongues”

Jessica Horn is a feminist activist, writer and consultant passionate about the struggle for African women to live empowered, healthy lives in their bodies. She has worked with community groups, NGOs, donors, and the UN around advancing sexual rights, ending violence against women, supporting women living with HIV, researching religious fundamentalisms and ensuring women’s rights in conflict-affected contexts. Early in her career, Jessica was nominated as a Soros Reproductive Health and Rights Fellow, authoring a book chapter on African feminist perspectives on Female Genital Mutilation. She has since been part of creating ground-breaking initiatives, including UHAI- the first African-led fund focusing on sexual health and rights, and FRIDA- The Young Feminist Fund. In 2012 Jessica was named an African woman change maker by ARISE Magazine’s African and as one of Applause Africa’s 40 Africans Changemakers under 40. She is a founding member of the African Feminist Forum, a board member of women’s funds Urgent Action-Fund Africa and Mama Cash, and editor of OurAfrica, profiling African women’s voices on open Democracy. With roots in Uganda’s Mountains of the Moon and the shadows of New York’s Yankee stadium, Jessica grew up in Southern Africa and the South Pacific and has since visited 46 countries including 17 in the African region. .

Tickets are available exclusively for you here for a token amount:-http://tedxeustonsalon2013.eventbrite.com

There are only 120 tickets and they will go quickly so get yours now to avoid disappointment. 

We look forward to welcoming you to TEDxEustonSalon 2013!

Yours Faithfully,

The TEDxEuston Team

Alcinda Honwana at TEDxEuston 2012 - "Africa in the hands of its youth"

She believes that the future of Africa lies in the hands of its youth. Alcinda Honwana has written extensively on how the future is hijacked when the elite manipulate the generation she refers to as the 'waithood generation' into fighting senseless wars. She has written on child soldiers. In her TEDxEuston 2012 talk, she challenges the conventional wisdom of having our youth remain in the state of 'waithood', a situation she defines in one of her books as 'a never ending time waiting for life to begin when they will have a job, can get married and have a family.'  The youth must begin to fight for their own socioeconomic and political right. It is up to them to fight for social change and up to us to encourage them. The future must begin now.

Watch her fascinating talk HERE!

Alcinda Honwana is currently a visiting professor in anthropology and international development at the Open University (OU) in the UK. Before joining the Open University, Honwana worked for the Social Science Research Council in New York where she directed the Children and Armed Conflict Program and the Africa Program. She also worked for the United Nations as research coordinator in the Office of the Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict. Honwana was the coordinator of the International Research Network on Children and Armed Conflict from 2001 to 2005. Born in Mozambique, Alcinda Honwana has written extensively on the links between political conflict and culture and the impacts of violent conflict on young people, conducting research in Mozambique, DRC, Angola, Colombia and Sri Lanka. In 2007 she was awarded the prestigious Prince Claus Chair for Development and Equity in Holland by the Institute of Social Studies and University of Utrecht.

Jacqueline Novogratz at TEDxEuston - "Power in our interconnectedness"

Jacqueline Novogratz recently twitted: '2012 has reinforced for me in countless ways that we are each other's destiny'.  Her belief in how destiny works has been her motivation for remaining in the business of creating hope and impacting millions of lives. This belief in our interconnectedness with each other, partnered with compassion, compelled her to leave a comfortable job with "Chase" behind to dedicate her life to helping the vulnerable bridge the economic gap. Under her leadership, Acumen Fund has invested more than $75 million in 70 companies in South Asia and Africa, focused on delivering affordable healthcare, water, housing and energy to the poor.  Her TEDxEuston talk challenges conventional wisdom by inviting us to rethink the way we view the world and its poor.

Watch her powerful and passionate talk HERE.

Jacqueline Novogratz is the founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of poverty. Acumen Fund aims to create a world beyond poverty by investing in social enterprises, emerging leaders, and breakthrough ideas. Under Jacqueline’s leadership, Acumen Fund has invested more than $72 million in 65 companies in South Asia and Africa, all focused on delivering affordable healthcare, water, housing and energy to the poor. These companies have created and supported more than 55,000 jobs, leveraged an additional $200 million, and brought basic services to tens of millions. In December 2011, Acumen Fund and Jacqueline were on the cover of Forbes magazine as part of their feature on social innovation. Prior to Acumen Fund, Jacqueline founded and directed The Philanthropy Workshop and The Next Generation Leadership programs at the Rockefeller Foundation. Jacqueline currently sits on the advisory board of the Harvard Business School Social Enterprise Initiative, the Aspen Institute Board of Trustees, and the board of IDEO.org, and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council for Social Innovation. She was also appointed by Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton to the Department of State’s Foreign Affairs Policy Board. Her best-selling memoir The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World chronicles her quest to understand poverty and challenges readers to grant dignity to the poor and to rethink their engagement with the world. She has an MBA from Stanford and a BA in Economics/International Relations from the University of Virginia. She has received honorary doctorates from the University of Notre Dame and Wofford College, and the Freedom From Want Award from the Roosevelt Institute in 2011. Follow Jacqueline on Twitter @jnovogratz

Komla Dumor at TEDxEuston 2013 - Telling the African Story

Known in some circles as 'The Boss Player’, Komla Dumor began his career as a traffic reporter in Ghana. Now he is a BBC World News, BBC World Service presenter and now anchors his own programme on the BBC called "Focus on Africa".  His hero is Kwame Nkrumah 'because of his courage; he lived and died for the Ghana and Africa that he believed in.' He can be said to be pursuing, in his own way, the same dream of an Africa that is completely free. His TEDxEuston 2012 talk challenges the conventional wisdom of having others speak for us. It challenges Africans to tell African stories, the way only Africans can.

Komla did something no one else has ever done on the TEDxEuston stage - you have to see it (or sing along) to believe! Watch his incredible talk HERE, and share widely!

Komla Dumor is one of the most recognised faces voices at the British Broadcasting Corporation. After a successful career in journalism in this native Ghana where he was named journalist of the year in 2003 for his investigations into public sector corruption, this former medical student joined the BBC in 2006 as the anchor of Network Africa. He is currently one of BBC's leading presenters with a range of responsibilities across all of the BBC's platforms - television radio and online. Komla presents the European morning programme on World News for the BBC's British and global audiences but his strongest contribution to the BBC has been his passionate and unparalleled coverage of Africa. Between 2009 and 2012 Komla was the anchor of the groundbreaking Africa Business Report on BBC World News. This program (a first for the BBC) took Komla to close to 20 African countries covering hundreds of thousands of miles interviewing the continents top entrepreneurs, politicians and policy makers. In addition to the European mornings Komla is the face and main anchor for the first BBC's programme dedicated daily African news and current affairs show; Focus on Africa

Jason Njoku at TEDxEuston 2012 - Failing all the way to success!

A Chemistry graduate, he rose from treading the streets of south London for Nollywood movies for relatives to  leading  a company that is now the largest distributor of Nollywood movies online. Last year, IROKO TV secured $8 million dollars in funding from US based Hedge Fund Tiger Global. His  TEDxEuston 2012 talk challenges the conventional wisdom of eschewing failure. Coming from a highly successful man, this sounds rather paradoxical but his invitation to embrace failure is compelling and powerful.

Listen to his amazing, powerful talk here! 

Jason Njoku , is a Nigerian internet entrepreneur, and is CEO and founder of Iroko partners, the largest distributor of Nigerian music and movies online. Jason studied at the University of Manchester and grew up in the UK. Most Nigerians enjoy watching Nollywood movies; however accessing these movies is not easy. Recognising the increased demand and the limited access to quality, legal movies online, Jason moved to Lagos to start Iroko Partners with the aim of bringing Nigerian entertainment online. The website was launched in December 2011, and by the end of the year had received 152 million views with 90% of them outside Africa. Within 18 months the company has grown with offices in Lagos, London and recently New York. While Jason plans for iROKOtv to be the Netflix of Africa, the new service, Iroking launched earlier this year, and aims to be the African “Spotify”. Jason’s vision was shared by US Based Hedge Fund Tiger Global as he has recently secured $ 8 million in funding from the firm. It is exciting times for Nollywood and Afrobeat music, with the Nollywood veteran Genevieve Nnaji cast in the film adaptation of the acclaimed novel Half of a Yellow Sun, and Dbanj joining Kanye West’s label GOOD Music. Jason’s product has arrived at the right time, and will unite African’s worldwide to enjoy African entertainment.

Albie Sachs at TEDxEuston 2012 - The soft vengeance of a freedom fighter

“There is only one vengeance that can assuage the loss of my arm, and it is a historical one: victory of our ideals.” 

Those are the words of Albie Sachs who lost an arm and an eye to a bomb planted by security forces frustrated by his fight for his ideals: a world where all men are equal. His TEDxEuston 2012 talk challenges the conventional wisdom of how we look at vengeance.  It is not hard, like rock. Vengeance, in his words, is 'soft.'   It is something we seek not to satisfy our personal quest for revenge, but it is rather a quest for change.

He moved 600 people to tears with his incredible personal story. 

Find out why....watch his talk HERE. 

ALL THE PICTURES AVAILABLE HERE

On turning six, during World War II, Albie Sachs received a card from his father expressing the wish that he would grow up to be a soldier in the fight for liberation. His career in human rights activism started at the age of seventeen, when as a second year law student at the University of Cape Town, he took part in the Defiance of Unjust Laws Campaign. Three years later he attended the Congress of the People at Kliptown where the Freedom Charter was adopted. He started practice as an advocate at the Cape Bar aged 21. The bulk of his work involved defending people charged under racist statutes and repressive security laws. Many faced the death sentence. He himself was raided by the security police, subjected to banning orders restricting his movement and eventually placed in solitary confinement without trial for two prolonged spells of detention. In 1966 he went into exile. After spending eleven years studying and teaching law in England he worked for a further eleven years in Mozambique as law professor and legal researcher. In 1988 he was blown up by a bomb placed in his car in Maputo by South African security agents, losing an arm and the sight of an eye. During the 1980s working closely with Oliver Tambo, leader of the ANC in exile, he helped draft the organisation's Code of Conduct, as well as its statutes. After recovering from the bomb he devoted himself full-time to preparations for a new democratic Constitution for South Africa. In 1990 he returned home and as a member of the Constitutional Committee and the National Executive of the ANC took an active part in the negotiations which led to South Africa becoming a constitutional democracy. After the first democratic election in 1994 he was appointed by President Nelson Mandela to serve on the newly established Constitutional Court. During his fifteen years on the Court he and his colleagues produced a number of pioneering decisions on advancing human rights in contemporary Africa. He has since travelled to many countries sharing South African experience in healing divided societies. Right now he is serving for a year in Kenya as one of three foreign judges on a Vetting Board that is interviewing all the country’s judges and magistrates to decide if they are suitable to remain on the Bench.

Cobhams Asuquo at TEDxEuston 2012 - "The Gift of Blindness"

He reads Braille, is a musician, producer, and songwriter par excellence. Yet Cobhams Asuquo never trained as a musician. He has allegedly said that his music career began when as a child he used to puff his cheeks to play the 12-bar blues.  Today, he is known for producing some of the finest artistes in Nigeria, including the sensation, Asa, whose 2007 debut album was an international hit, and Bez, an emerging star in the Nigerian music scene. Born in 1981, he has not let his age or his disability get in the way of every dream he has ever had. His middle name ought to be INSPIRATIONAL.In his compelling talk – he says;”One of the things that has fueled my ability to dream has been the gift of blindness”. The “gift of blindness”?. How can that be? This might sound paradoxical…but that is what the event was all about – challenging conventional wisdom. Listen to Cobhams’ talk and be inspired.

 Watch his amazing talk at TEDxEuston 2012 HERE

Cobhams Asuquo is a singer/songwriter/music producer and music entrepreneur. After graduating from the Pacelli School for the Blind and King’s College Lagos, he started his professional training as a lawyer, but later branched out into music full-time to fulfill a lifelong desire. While working with a Nigerian music label as an in-house producer, he gained a unique insight into the local music scene. He saw the opportunities and challenges within the industry with a vision to develop an entrepreneurial platform from which to drive the industry forward. Today he is the founder and chief executive officer of Cobhams Asuquo Music Productions (CAMP). He gained international attention for producing and co-writing ‘Asa’, the debut self-titled album for the acclaimed soul singer. He was recently featured on CNN’s African Voicesfor his contribution and impact on the African music industry. Rising alternative soul artiste, Bez is the first of three artistes signed by Cobhams to the C.A.M.P record label, and Bez’s debut album ‘Super Sun’ was highlighted on The Boston Globe’s top ten list of best ‘world music’ albums of 2011. He has won several awards in the music and film scene in Africa and beyond.