I D E Acity Twenty 19
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I D E A C I EST. 2000 EST. T Y T W E N T Y 1 9 WORDS FROM MOSES In the fall of ’97, out of the blue, I got a call from Tech was just beginning its crest into the a Richard Saul Wurman, who introduced himself as unstoppable force that it has become, and there an “information architect”, and the organizer of a were many stars both on stage (Herbie Hancock, new kind of conference that he had concocted that I think, or maybe it was Quincy Jones), and in the combined elements of technology, entertainment audience (like Nicholas Negroponte, creator of and design, and that he called “TED”. He said he’d MIT’s Media Lab, and Marvin Minsky, a father of AI), heard about this thing that I had concocted and so you can imagine that I was a bit nervous when installed at the corner of my TV building, some kind I began to talk about little old CityTV and MuchMusic, of Video Booth that sounded like it contained the and how I had put them both on a downtown street, same elements of tech, ent and design, and would visible and interactive in a new kind of wired-up I come down to Monterey to give a 20-minute venerable old building that helped bring the entire Talk about it? area around it back to life. So I did, and found myself in the spring of ’98 at Well, darn if my reel of typical Speakers Corner a small gathering of about 250/300 people, among footage didn’t turn out to be the hit of the conference. whom there was a guy named Bezos, who was The simplicity of it. The authenticity of it. What apparently planning to sell books online; and charmed these apostles of digital connectivity was another guy called Warnock (a founder of Adobe, that it seemed to embody what they had in mind I came to learn) who had come to show off his when they talked about all the new democratic prized possession, which was a Gutenberg Bible; voices that the new tech would unleash. and Billy Graham, whose surprise appearance So, Richard immediately asked me back for a before the pioneering men and women of the follow-up appearance, something he rarely did. digital era posed the question why tech wasn’t Accordingly, I came back in ’99, with action footage making us better people. from both inside and outside the huge garage door roll-up window walls that I had installed on Queen Street West; and wowed the crowd all over again! IDEACITY TWENTY 19 01 People were energized, and seemed eager to learn Moreover, he was retiring. It took me about a minute more about my ideas, and about Toronto; so as to decide to keep going; and since the whole thing the conference was wrapping up, I asked Richard was and is about ideas, that’s how “ideaCity” got if he’d ever thought about doing TED elsewhere. started and how it got its name. He said “Yes, but I’ve never done anything about it.” In the nineteen years since, we’ve hosted close to a So I said “Well then, come do it with me in TO, where thousand speakers and performers, who’ve “talked” I have something you don’t have!” “Oh yeah?” he for some 20,000 minutes on hundreds of different challenged, “What?” “TV programs”, I said, “and the subjects. Name a hot topic today, and chances are channels on which to play them.” ideaCity was onto it early: radical life extension, And so in the year 2000, we launched “TEDCity”*, space exploration, robots, marijuana, block chain, to great acclaim, and with many cameras present. to name a few. It’s a considerable effort, and takes Outstanding reviews and encouraging pre-sales in a year and a fair amount of money to mount. But hand, we were well into planning the second outing what makes every bit of that effort worthwhile is the in 2001 when Richard announced that he had sold unique opportunity it affords us to meet and learn his American conference and, with it, the name, about and from some of the world’s brightest, most so we couldn’t use the TED word anymore. innovative, most fascinating people. *TEDCity 2000 featured: Frank Gehry Chris Dewdney William Gibson Moshe Safdie ARCHITECTS WRITERS Douglas Cardinal Barbara Gowdy FUTURE FUTURE NOBEL Natalie BELL CANADA PRIZE WINNER MacMaster SUPREMO Art McDonald George Cope MUSICIANS Jukka-Pekka Saraste Norman Jewison FUTURE GOVERNOR SHOWBIZ GENERAL OF CANADA Julie Payette LUMINARIES Biruté Galdikas THE Joseph MacInnis GREENPEACE ORANGUTAN CO-FOUNDER LADY Bob Hunter My original thought in planning this year’s 20th So I feel we must set hoopla aside for a while anniversary edition, was to open with a flight of our and open this gathering instead by asking whether most memorable alumni, looking at the talks they the many gifts and breakthroughs of the digital era gave when they were previously on our stage, are worth the looming prospect of the totalitarian and telling us what they think now about what they state or the totalitarian corporation. said then. Then and now; that was the idea, and Other than that, Dear Idealists, as always, you are we reflect that theme in the photos in this book. commanded to get to know each other and have But events have overtaken us and now, among some fun! At Zoomer, we say “The Best Way to the many other crises clamouring for our attention Keep Going, is to Keep Going”; so be forewarned! in these hyper-oxygenated times, I fear the Crisis I’m young, and ambitious, and not slowing down! Facing Democracy, beleaguered politically on See you in 2020! both right and left, and technologically in retreat, may be the greatest of them all. IDEACITY TWENTY 19 03 1. Happy birthday to us! It’s our twentieth, and 5. Tap and win! Your badge has a cute little NFC we’re thrilled to be able to share it with you and chip nestled inside, and as you enter the theatre, yours. Feel free to share your inspo, thoughts it gets tapped. Each tap at the theatre door and selfies or pearls of wisdom from the stage transmits your info to our system and enters with your networks. Bonus points if you tag us you into our daily prize draw. BTW, you need to via @ideacity or use the hashtag #ideacity both tap in and be in the room during the last session of the day to be eligible to win a prize. 2. Schmooze it up! Most speakers and performers stay for the entire conference – and the 6. Check out our space! Our lobbies are just as attendees are every bit as interesting and interesting as the presentations. Check out our extraordinary. Chance encounters can lead bookstore on the second floor and buy a book to new ideas, fortunes and friendships. – or even get one autographed! (Book-signing So be strange, and not a stranger. schedule posted at the bookstore daily.) 3. I do! Make a commitment to stay the whole three 7. Indulge your snacking senses! Don’t be days and open up to the unexpected. The most afraid to treat your taste buds to our deliciously intense idealists know, from their years of catered morsels during breakfast and the experience, that those who throw themselves conversation breaks. Look for unexpected into all three days get the most out of it. goodies and surprises. Sessions can be Speakers (and subjects) you may not initially long, so keep yourself from getting hangry! be drawn to often turn out to be the most 8. Pay it forward! You’ll gather a lot of new inspirational of the entire conference. information, inspiration and contacts by being 4. Sit up front! Theatre doors open 5 to 10 minutes at ideacity, and hey, if you love it, let us know before each session. As you enter, the back by signing up for next year! We have one of these rows will be cordoned off until the front rows are every year, and 2020 will be no different. Book filled. Please give yourself enough time to find now for next year; our dates are June 17, 18 and a seat before the session begins – there is no 19, 2020. Stop by the registration desk and get reserved seating. After each session, make sure the early bird deal before the conference ends. you take all of your possessions with you. Sit back, relax and immerse yourself fully. Enjoy! IDEACITY TWENTY 19 05 IDEACITY TEAM Moses Znaimer Connie Diletti Yohan Mathew Founder, Executive Producer Producer, ideacity VP, Shows & Conferences & Host [email protected] [email protected] Leanne Wright Richard Robertson Kelly Antonaros VP, Communications Senior Manager, General Manager, ZoomerShow ZoomerMedia Ltd. Shows & Conferences [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] David Cravit Khadeejah Aamir Heather Beaven VP, ZoomerU Marketing Specialist, Event Manager, [email protected] Shows & Conferences Shows & Conferences [email protected] [email protected] Richard Lumsden Faye Carter VP, Creative Services Senior Account Manager, ZoomerMedia Ltd. Shows & Conferences [email protected] [email protected] DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 Champagne Reception Session 3: Cannabis Session 6: God & Jill Sobule (Human) Nature Session 1: Is It Worth It? Bruce Linton Daniel Wnukowski Voices Rock Canada Dr. Christelle Gedeon Joan E. Taylor The Great Debate (Reprise) Cam Battley Anna Porter Roger McNamee John Fowler Jim & Sue Waddington Irwin Cotler Bowser and Blue Wade Davis Conrad Black L’équipe Tambora Albert Nerenberg Session 4: Disruptors Anna Van Acker Session 7: Health & Longevity Session 2: Democracy & Freedom Mark Halpern Alexander Tsiaras of Speech vs.