Big chance to talk for TED

The legendary TED talks are looking for new talent across the globe, and Johannesburg will be one of the audition cities. But applications close this week …

This week Johannesburg joins Doha, London, Nairobi, Tunis and 9 other cities, on 6 continents in hosting TED 2013 Worldwide Auditions, a public search to uncover new talents, voices and ideas the world needs to hear, for TED 2013 themed ‚The Young, The Wise, The Undiscovered‚ , to be held in California, USA.

Applicants can apply to their nearest city even if they are from a different country and in exceptional cases TED may contribute to costs of attending the audition. The auditions will be held in Johannesburg on Thursday 3 May 2012. Auditions will take the form of a 3 to 6 minute talk or performance in English only.

The Online Applications process for the Johannesburg Auditions opened on Friday, 2 February and will close this Thursday, 15 March 2012. Applicants are encouraged to include a 1-minute video of themselves, and 30 of the best applicants will be invited to the Johannesburg Auditions.

TED, which stands for “Technology, Entertainment, Design””, has become a byword for state of the art talks and presentations.

In South Africa, TED has partnered with TEDxSoweto to deliver the Johannesburg leg of the auditions. TEDxSoweto convener Kelo Kubu, who also happens to be TEDxAmbassador for Africa, had this to say: ‚Our goal is to find remarkable people doing great work, across disciplines, wherever they may be. This is a great opportunity to showcase Africas’ ingenuity to the world‚ .

The line-up of previous TED Speakers includes former US President Bill Clinton, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, writer Chris Abani, scientist Neil Turok, musicians Vusi Mahlasela & Paul Simon, and many others: Nobel laureates, CEOs, designers and inventors.

The rapid expansion of TED’s footprint across the globe and in Africa has largely been driven by its TEDx programme, where qualifying applicants can host independently organised TED events. With over 25 TEDx licenses issued to South Africans since 2009, the country is one of the most active on the African continent.

For more information please visit: http://conferences.ted.com/TED2013/auditions/ or http://www.tedxsoweto.co.za

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