TED Talk Tuesday Archives
The Eugene J McCarthy Center is pleased to Sponsor TED Talk Tuesdays, an informal gathering in which students watch and discuss a TED Talk with a faculty moderator.
2020-2021
March 30, 2021 - Featuring Dr. Patricia Bolanos-Fabres and Victoria Evens
Topic: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: "We Should All Be Feminists."
“We teach girls that they can have ambition, but not too much ... to be successful, but not too successful, or they'll threaten men, says author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. In this classic talk that started a worldwide conversation about feminism, Adichie asks that we begin to dream about and plan for a different, fairer world -- of happier men and women who are truer to themselves.”
2019-2020
February 11, 2020 - Featuring Dr. Ellen Block
Topic: Miriam Zoila Perez: "How Racism harms Pregnant Women."
Dr. Ellen Block, professor of sociology, facilitated a discussion around Miriam Zoila Perez's TED Talk, "How Racism Harms Pregnant Women". The discussion centered around disparities in maternal healthcare across racial lines and the impact of these differences on people of color in the United States.
October 15, 2019 - Featuring Dr. Kevin Clancy
Topic: Andy Puddicombe: "All It Takes Is 10 Mindful Minutes."
Dr. Kevin Clancy, Director of the Center of Global Education, discussed how taking 10, 5, or even 1 minute to reflect on mindfulness can have transformative power in managing stress during the academic year, in our personal lives, and especially with heightened emotions during the election season.
March 18, 2019 - Dr. Jeff Anderson
Topic: Mary Bassett: "Why your doctor should care about social justice."
In Zimbabwe in the 1980s, Mary Bassett witnessed the AIDS epidemic firsthand, and she helped set up a clinic to treat and educate local people about the deadly virus. But looking back, she regrets not sounding the alarm for the real problem: the structural inequities embedded in the world's political and economic organizations, inequities that make marginalized people more vulnerable. These same structural problems exist in the United States today, and as New York City's Health Commissioner, Bassett is using every chance she has to rally support for health equity and speak out against racism. "We don't have to have all the answers to call for change," she says. "We just need courage."
2018-2019
February 12, 2019 - Featuring Janelle Kendall & Dr. Jonathon Nash
Topic: Adam Foss.: "A Prosecutor's Vision for a Better Justice System."
When a kid commits a crime, the US justice system has a choice: prosecute to the full extent of the law, or take a step back and ask if saddling young people with criminal records is the right thing to do every time. In this searching talk, Adam Foss, a prosecutor with the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office in Boston, makes his case for a reformed justice system that replaces wrath with opportunity, changing people's lives for the better instead of ruining them.
March 18, 2019 - Featuring Dr. Jeffrey Anderson
Topic: Mary Bassett: "Why your Doctor Should Care about Social Justice."
In Zimbabwe in the 1980s, Mary Bassett witnessed the AIDS epidemic firsthand, and she helped set up a clinic to treat and educate local people about the deadly virus. But looking back, she regrets not sounding the alarm for the real problem: the structural inequities embedded in the world's political and economic organizations, inequities that make marginalized people more vulnerable. These same structural problems exist in the United States today, and as New York City's Health Commissioner, Bassett is using every chance she has to rally support for health equity and speak out against racism. "We don't have to have all the answers to call for change," she says. "We just need courage."
2017-2018
March 12, 2018 - Featuring President Mary Dana Hinton
Topic: Brene Brown: "The Power of Vulnerability."
Brené Brown studies human connection -- our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity. A talk to share.
February 27, 2018 - Featuring Dr. Laura Taylor
Topic: Kimberle Crenshaw: "The Urgency of Intersectionality."
Now more than ever, it's important to look boldly at the reality of race and gender bias -- and understand how the two can combine to create even more harm. Kimberlé Crenshaw uses the term "intersectionality" to describe this phenomenon; as she says, if you're standing in the path of multiple forms of exclusion, you're likely to get hit by both. In this moving talk, she calls on us to bear witness to this reality and speak up for victims of prejudice.
November 7, 2017 - Featuring Br. Paul Richards
Topic: Ernesto Sirroli: "Want to Help Someone? Shut Up and Listen!"
When most well-intentioned aid workers hear of a problem they think they can fix, they go to work. This, Ernesto Sirolli suggests, is naïve. In this funny and impassioned talk, he proposes that the first step is to listen to the people you're trying to help, and tap into their own entrepreneurial spirit. His advice on what works will help any entrepreneur.
October 10, 2017 - Featuring Dr. Michael Ewing
Topic: Shawn Achor: "The Happy Secret to Better Work."
We believe we should work hard in order to be happy, but could we be thinking about things backwards? In this fast-moving and very funny talk, positive psychologist Shawn Achor argues that, actually, happiness inspires us to be more productive. Shawn Achor is the CEO of Good Think Inc., where he researches and teaches about positive psychology. He is also the winner of over a dozen distinguished teaching awards at Harvard University.
September 26, 2017 - Featuring Dr. William Sullivan
Topic: Yanis Varoufakius: "Capitalism Will Eat Democracy."
Have you wondered why politicians aren't what they used to be, why governments seem unable to solve real problems? Economist Yanis Varoufakis, the former Minister of Finance for Greece, says that it's because you can be in politics today but not be in power -- because real power now belongs to those who control the economy. He believes that the mega-rich and corporations are cannibalizing the political sphere, causing financial crisis. In this talk, hear his dream for a world in which capital and labor no longer struggle against each other, "one that is simultaneously libertarian, Marxist and Keynesian."
September 12, 2017 - Featuring Dr. Carol Brash
Topic: J.R.: "Use Art to Turn the World Inside Out."
French street artist JR uses his camera to show the world its true face, by pasting photos of the human face across massive canvases. At TED2011, he makes his audacious TED Prize wish: to use art to turn the world inside out.
2016-2017
April 11, 2017
Topic: Sajay Samuel: "How college loans exploit students for profit"
Join the McCarthy Center for a viewing and discussion of Sajay Manuel's TED Talk on college loans.
March 21, 2017
Topic: Louise Fresco: "We need to feed the whole world"
Join the McCarthy Center for a viewing and discussion of Louise Fresco's TED Talk of mass produced, supermarket-style white bread.
February 21, 2017
Topic: Brené Brown: "Listening to Shame"
Join the McCarthy Center for a viewing and discussion of Brené Brown's TED Talk on shame, guilt, and vulnerability.
January 31, 2017
Topic: Monica Araya: "A Small Country with Big Ideas to Get Rid of Fossil Fuels"
Join the McCarthy Center for a viewing and discussioin of Monica Araya's TED Talk on fossil fuels.
2015-2016
April 12, 2016
Topic: David Rothkopf: "How fear drives American politics".
Join the McCarthy Center for a viewing and discussion on David Rothkopf's TED Talk on American politics.
March 1, 2016
Topic: Pam Warhurst: "How we can eat our landscapes".
Join the McCarthy Center, ETL, and Professor Diane Veale-Jones for a viewing and discussion on Pam Warhurst's TED Talk on agricultural and community involvement.
February 16, 2016
Topic: Noy Thrupkaew: “Human trafficking is all around you. This is how it works”.
Join the McCarthy Center for a viewing and discussion on Noy Thripkaew's TED Talk on human trafficking.
January 16, 2016
Topic: Verna Myers: "How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them".
Join the McCarthy Center and Intercultural and International Student Service Office Director Brandyn Woodard for a viewing and discussion on Verna Myer's TED Talk on racial bias.
December 1, 2015
Topic: Samantha Power: "A complicated hero in the war on dictatorship".
Join the McCarthy Center and Political Science Professor Christi Siver for a viewing and discussion on Samantha Power's TED Talk on evil and dictatorship.
November 17, 2015
Topic: Mary Robinson: "Why Climate Change is a Threat to Human Rights".
Join the McCarthy Center and Theology Professor Bernie Evans for a viewing and discussion on Mary Robinson's TED Talk on climate change and human rights.
October 20, 2015
Topic: Jamie Oliver: "Teach every child about food".
Join the McCarthy Center and Nutrition Professor Alexa Evenson for a viewing and discussion on Jamie Oliver's TED Talk on food education in the United States.
September 29, 2015
Topic: Jon Ronson, "How One Tweet Can Ruin Your Life".
Join the McCarthy Center and Tiffany Clements, CSB/SJU Social Media Specialist, for a viewing and discussion about how we interact online.
September 15, 2015
Topic: Rebecca Onie, "What if Our Healthcare System Kept us Healthy?"
Join the McCarthy Center and Political Science Professor John Friend for a viewing of Rebecca Onie's TED Talk and discussion on how to improve daily healthcare.
2014-2015
March 31, 2015
Topic: Mellody Hobson: "Color Blind or Color Brave?"
Join the McCarthy Center and CSB President Mary Dana Hinton for a discussion about race in America today.
March 17, 2015
Topic: Wade Davis: "Dreams from Endangered Cultures"
Join the McCarthy Center, Professor Ted Gordon, and members of Extending the Link, CSB/SJU's student-run documentary team, for a discussion about indigenous cultures and the problems posed to them by globalization.
February 24, 2015
Topic: Dambisa Moyo: "Is China the New Model for Emerging Economies?"
Join the McCarthy Center and scholar-in-residence Dr. Paul Heer for a discussion about China and China's role in the world.
January 27, 2015
Topic: Brene Brown, "The Power of Vulnerability"
Join the McCarthy Center and Professor Pam Bacon of the Psychology department for a discussion about vulnerability as an essential component to individual happiness.
December 2, 2014
Topic: Robert Litan, "An Economist Walks into a Bar.."
Join the McCarthy Center and Professor Louis Johnston of the Economics department for a discussion about the rise of the internet economy and the economic principles behind phenomena such as Cupid.com, Priceline, and Amazon.
November 18, 2014
Topic: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, "The Danger of a Single Story"
Join the McCarthy Center and English professor Madhu Mitra for a discussion about how a single narrative can adversely shape how we view different groups of people.
October 28, 2014
Topic: Amy Cuddy, "Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are"
Join the McCarthy Center and Communications professor Julie Lynch for a viewing and discussion of Amy Cuddy's TED Talk on "power posing".
October 7, 2014
Topic: Jessica Jackley, "Poverty, money-and love"
Join the McCarthy Center and SJU Alum John Chromy '64 for a viewing and discussion on poverty and how it is viewed.
September 23, 2014
Topic: Sir Ken Robinson, "Changing Education Paradigms"
Join the McCarthy Center and Dr. Whitney Court for a viewing and discussion about new ideas in education.
September 16, 2014
Topic: Erica Chenoweth, "The Success of Non-Violent Civil Resistance"
Join the McCarthy Center and Professor Kelly Kraemer for a viewing and discussion on the merits and success of non-violent resistance.