Live Broadcast of the TEDxRiga 2018 Platform for Ideas from the National Library of Latvia

On 2 November the 7th annual TEDxRiga Conference will take place at the National Library of Latvia (NLL), where over 20 recognised speakers and performers will share their ideas throughout the day. Among them are expert in strategic communications Jānis Sārts, the head of the Foundation for an Open Society DOTS Ieva Morica, improviser and host of radio programmes Kaspars Breidaks, IT education enthusiast Elīna Ingelande, politologist and TV host Mārtiņš Daugulis, resident-physician at the RSU Clinic of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy and lecturer, Artūrs Miksons and journalist Nellija Ločmele.

This year, in cooperation with NLL, a live broadcast of the conference will be available for viewing free of change in 10 regional libraries and in six libraries of higher education institutions, including the RSU Library. Everyone interested is welcome to follow the live broadcast of the conference at the RSU library on the 1st Floor from 9.00 to 17.00. The event will be held in English and Latvian.

The motto Bring the Light or The Enlightenment has been chosen as the theme for TEDxRiga 2018. According to the representative of TEDxRiga team of organisers, Pāvils Jurjāns, "This year's TEDxRiga theme is meant to bring to everyone's attention the fact that light is everywhere. It shines brightly in the talented people of Latvia and in the excellent ideas that echo all around the world, in the bright minds and the shining eyes. The time has come to see, absorb, embody and disseminate that light, and four thematic sessions of the conference will serve as an encouragement. This is the darkest time of the year and the anniversary month of Latvia – there is no better time to look at everything from the bright side.”

Briefly about the speakers

• Jānis Sārts has been on the front line of Latvia’s defence for more than 20 years. He is the former State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence, headed the Defence Section of Latvia’s Delegation to NATO and the EU, was the Chair of the National Cyber Security Board and drafted Latvia’s cyber security policy. Presently Jānis Sārts is the Director of the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence, which explores and tests ideas and approaches with regard to information security.

• Ieva Morica is the Director of the Foundation for an Open Society DOTS, which is best known for the annual Conversation Festival LAMPA. Over ten years Ieva has worked to strengthen democracy, social entrepreneurship and inclusion. Over the past years Ieva has worked on the Conversation Festival Lampa that gathered over 16 thousand people representing various interests and opinions for open conversations.

• Kaspars Breidaks is known for his positive attitude, charisma, enthusiasm and humour. He is a one-man orchestra: a host of radio programmes and events, an actor and a co-founder of the improvisation theatre "Spiediens" (Pressure). After performing in Chicago, Kaspars returned to Latvia and has represented Latvia in various international improvisation shows and festivals in France, Spain, Germany, Denmark, Finland and Estonia. One of his goals is to promote the art of improvisation in Latvia.

• The dream of Elīna Ingelande is to make Latvia into the Silicon Valley of the Baltic States. She and her friend Linda Sinka founded Learn IT – the first coding school for children in Latvia that helps them to acquire the basics of the IT world. She believes that it is important to teach and motivate children to become competitive professionals in the IT field and lay a foundation for a modern, technology-based society.

• Mārtiņš Daugulis is best known as a TV personality and a host of various programmes, but that is just one aspect of his professional life. He is also a recognised expert in political science, a doctoral candidate and a lecturer at Rīga Stradiņš University. He researches strategic and political communication, EU identity and future development as well as international relations with China.

• Nellija Ločmele is a journalist and the editor-in-chief and co-founder of the magazine IR. Her career began in the 1990s, her contribution to journalism and society in general is notable – she has stood up for independent journalism and reported on important events, including corruption at the governmental level. She is known for her integrity and fight for the truth, Nellija knows that quality journalism is essential for a country’s future.

TED is an international non-profit organisation operating under the motto Ideas Worth Spreading. The main goal of the organisation is to spread ideas generated by experts in various industries for human development and improvement of the quality of life and the environment. Within the TED movement eminent people share their ideas in 18 minute presentations aimed at familiarising the viewers with their ideas and achievements. Videos of these presentations have been watched over a billion times at the TED.com website.

TEDx platforms of ideas are organised by the greatest organisation activists from all over the world in their cities once a year, based on a licence granted by TED. They are not only an opportunity for promoting TED ideas in various corners of the world, but also allow to expand the range of speakers and listeners promoting communication among them to further world-changing ideas and put such ideas into action.