Lakeland PBS presents Common Ground brought to you by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and the citizens of Minnesota.

Production funding of Common Ground is made possible in part by First National Bank Bemidji, continuing their second century of service to the community, member FDIC.

Welcome to Common Ground.

I'm producer/director Scott Knudson.

In this second of two episodes, we conclude our look at TEDx Bemidji 2018.

Tammy: There were so many fun moments one of the ones that stands out for me is the Facebook live event we did.

Where we I think we rattled off, we were into the top 10 reasons you should come to TEDx.

And we got to go to Lakeland studios and sit in the little formal thing.

It was so much fun.

We ended up with like 35 reasons that went on forever.

The TEDx donuts that Raphael's made for us.

I have a great picture our photographer caught with me shoving one in my mouth, that was just cracked up.

The open mic nights we did at both Bridges and Bemidji Brew were so fun, so fun.

The after party getting to see all of our team, the speakers, the volunteers, everybody come together with the community sponsors.

But also getting to meet the support team for the speakers because getting on that stage that's a big deal and our speakers had some really fantastic support.

So it was fun to get to meet them.

The whole euphoria of when the lights went down as we launched the event and Sam and I stepped onto the stage and kicked it off.

That was an incredible feeling.

I think I sat down in the audience for about four minutes that day.

So I didn't really, I watched them all once they got up on the TEDx platform internationally.

But I did not get to see them in person, which is just part of being an organizer.

You just don't always get to see it live.

Delina: TEDx Bemidji 2018, was an event to bring young adults together to the community in one place.

To share in the celebrations of people's accomplishments in the community.

Samatha: Delina and I got to meet several times in preparation for her talk.

We went through what's called the red thread process, that was developed by Tampson Webster, it's amazing.

But essentially the first part of preparing for a TEDx talk, is really to identify that core idea.

Because really the reason why we're doing this is all about spreading ideas.

So to identify that core idea we had to figure out five critical elements.

First really the goal and this is the audience's goal for the talk.

And what that speaker can do to help them with that goal.

So we identified the goal, we had to identify the problem, the thing that's getting in the way of the audience's goal.

We had to identify the truth.

Now this is the truth that Delina would bring to that problem and to that goal.

And then we had to identify the change, that needs to happen for the audience to move from where they're stuck.

Right now to what DelIna believes would help them with that goal.

And then finally the action steps.

Delina: So my name is Delina white and I am a Native American apparel designer, a jewelry maker and a beadwork artist.

I was contacted via phone call and I was asked if I wanted to possibly be a participant with the TEDx in Bemidji.

I was completely surprised when I was contacted.

I couldn't believe that they were interested in hearing my story.

This is a skirt that lavender made.

Samantha: When presenters go through the steps of identifying the core idea, they're able to really focus their talk.

So they can get it down to that 10 minute time frame but also it helps the audience focus on really what is the message here.

Why are you sharing this with me?

Why does this matter to me?

What's in it for me?

It answers those key elements that the audience needs to understand, in order for them to receive the message.

Delina: My grandmother Maggie King, who lived in Onigum Minnesota.

Was a beadwork artist.

She was a master artist although she didn't know it.

And when I was six years old she taught me how to do beadwork.

And I would do simple stringing of the beads on the thread while she did the elaborate flat work stitch.

My family and I are PowWow dancers and we dance in the united states and Canada.

So from there we have to make our own traditional and the different styles of dancing apparel.

And it's something that you can't buy in a store.

It's something that's created by visions and traditions.

So that's where we started making apparel.

Samantha: The speaker is in service of the idea and their goal is to reach the audience and connect with them in some way.

By focusing on what the key elements of the core idea, what that is.

It will allow them to really deliver a talk that has more impact and resonates with the audience.

"They'll high five you greet you hand shake you whatever and then you go out this way" What was also neat about being backstage is that for the speaker that wasn't up next.

We sat on benches all together and when a speaker would come off stage we all had high fives and hugs and really rounds of support.

It felt like it, really felt like a team.

We had their back, we were so proud of them and really got to show that every time a speaker came off stage.

Delina: I've grown up in the powwow arena and we've always been told to dance your own style.

So I would tell a TEDx person to dance their own style, to be who they are and to just be confident about who you are and to be able to show that to people.

Because people are really interested in who you are and what you have to share.

Eric: When I looked at what TEDx stood for I thought I knew but the E does not stand for education.

It stands for entertainment.

I think that's one of the things that people criticize it for.

But as an elementary school teacher, I know that education is entertainment.

You need that element and it was really cool to have to think about making that a part of my talk as.

"Well this idea that art was.." Delina: When I was watching the other speakers, I had seen them when they were practicing.

And I was amazed at how serious they took their practice.

That they went out there and they did their practice as if they were live on stage.

"I'm going to invite you to take three deep breaths with me as I ring my chime and when I ring the chime and you're taking those breaths I invite you just to notice how you're feeling, not trying to change it but simply notice" And then I got to see them again in the audience when they were doing their presentations live on stage.

And I was so surprised and so amazed at how on cue they were, how on point they were and how they were able to make their points exactly as they did in practice.

Eric: I was just talking to some friends about what TEDx is and my experience.

And I ended up asking them what would their TED talk be?

Which is a great conversation starter, it's like what would your ted talk be?

And that's the question I had to ask myself.

Like what do I want to focus on?

And one of the things that emerged was just organizing my thoughts about what I do.

And one of the concepts that was really important to me was this idea of divergent thinking and convergent thinking.

And that's the creative process to me.

It's that you expand your ideas which I'm really good at but I have to also contract and edit and make them clear.

And TEDx forces you to do that.

TEDx is all about being as concise with your words and your concepts as possible.

And so I had to really take all my expansive ideas and bring them down into something that made sense and was relevant to people.

Delina: I think what stood out to me and I keep stressing about the professionalism and how serious people take.

Is that the reputation that TEDx has built for itself about getting the utmost important information from people who really experience it.

And who really work hard to create events and programming and working with the community and the youth.

Especially you know into one place where we can celebrate each other's successes in that way.

Eric: So Samantha Nienow was the one I worked with the most and she helped refine and inspire me.

I was so impressed with how she was able to give those constructive criticisms and not kill my enthusiasm.

So that was really useful.

When she was talking to me I felt like she was encouraging me the whole time to continue to find my vision and didn't kind of shape me in any direction and get get me off on a tangent, that wasn't from me personally.

Samantha: One of the cool things about event week is that there's a lot of PR and build up and excitement that happens before we do the event.

One of those opportunities included going to the KBXE studios in downtown Bemidji and talking with Katie Carter.

TEDx they wanted to allow other cities and communities around the world to put on this type of conference in their own communities and allow local organizers to curate what kinds of talks would be most relevant for their community.

Tammy: We got to talk about the formal piece of what TED is and then we got to talk about all of our speakers and how exciting it was going to be to hear all of them and the different subjects.

And I don't think there were callers calling in that day but it did get a lot of conversation started again and interest in the event.

They're actually available during registration, which is from 11 to 12:30 at The Fusion Center which is down the block from the Chief in the old Ben Franklin building.

"So all right, shuffle again I'm gonna do it.. should I do it.." Samantha: The preparation at the historic Chief Theater in downtown Bemidji was amazing.

When setting up for TEDx Bemidji it's like Christmas morning.

You get to finally put into place all the things that you've been planning for the last year set up in the theater.

So for example all of the video equipment gets trucked in, the projector the large screen on the stage.

The stage design for 2018 was this elaborate sculpture because our theme was momentum.

The designers and the designers were led by a team from Bemidji state university.

Their exhibit design program Sachel Josefson and Kaylee Burcham.

The designers came up with this idea of how can we use a continual thread?

"We're gonna have about four thousand hooks in each one of these x's.

We're gonna we're planning on maybe having two.

We have to be careful because if we pull it too tight the string breaks.

Momentum that gives momentum, how can we show momentum on the stage visually?

And what they came up with was this continuous thread that was in the shape of an X. Tammy: Sachel Josefson and his students worked magic on the stage with the string X's that were just incredible.

The sculpture was from the floor of the stage up to the ceiling of the Chief Theater, it was impressive and amazing.

It looked very complicated there were a lot of little metal pieces that the string had to roll through and there were ladders and sticks and it looked complicated.

They were creating this gigantic sculpture was astronomical, those poor students were there I believe all night the night before getting them ready.

But amazing, amazing backdrop for TEDx.

Tammy: I helped with the takedown the night of because that was literally the last thing we did was unwind all the string.

John: I really applaud Sachel and his team for pulling it off, there was definitely some stressful moments.

Where we didn't know what it was going to look like or what it was going to be like.

But ultimately he showed us, like it turned out great.

Tammy: And I remember him presenting it to the planning team and somebody on the team, and I don't remember who it was, looked at him and said can you actually do this?

And Sachel is such a jovial person, he laughed he goes I don't know but I think it's worth a try.

And darn if he didn't pull it off.

I mean that was amazing.

We set up a nice little space backstage for the speakers, we had a green room downstairs for the speakers.

"How did your family react when they saw the video for the first time?

They were surprised and proud."

Samantha: Another moment that will stay with me forever is working with the Red Lake Middle School students.

And being backstage with them before going on to present, we walk out and they get to share their stories.

And they were nervous, it was difficult to hear them sometimes.

But they were able to communicate to the audience why producing that video mattered so much to them.

Delina: What I really liked myself was the young Red Lake children who had put together the video.

And who get together and they make music.

And it's a combination of rap music and it's a combination of singing and speaking and talking about issues that affect the youth in Red Lake.

And they're spinning it so that it's a beautiful thing and they say you know in a rhythmic way because of course it's music.

And then they include the videos with the drones so you can see the landscape of beautiful Red Lake.

And you can see their water tower and you can see the lake and the kids and and that kind of thing.

So that togetherness of working with the youth to talk about some of the barriers and the hardships that they experience.

and can spin it and turn it around into I'm gonna, I'm gonna survive.

I'm gonna live.

I'm gonna be happy, this is my life and I love Red Lake.

I love who I am.

I love being a native person.

So for me that was really exciting to have you know there to share with the community.

So we can all celebrate those children too.

"How did your family react?

They were amazed and excited."

Samantha: As we were going backstage after presenting both students were emotionally moved.

And you could tell that the experience of being on stage really was powerful event for them.

And it was really scary for them.

And to see the love, the hugs, the high fives backstage from the other speakers, it still gives me goosebumps.

Like I was so proud in that moment of them and our community for being so supportive.

"oh my god" It was such a credible moment.

Why I think that was so incredible is that the students belong there.

We got to help them feel like they belong there.

Everybody loved and supported them, encouraged them and really wanted to see them do their best and they did it.

Delina: There was a young boy and a young girl and they talked a little bit and you can tell that they were shy but I really, really give them a lot of credit.

Because they were as professional as they could be for their age.

And they came out and they were serious and they were sincere and heartfelt about how they felt about their experience.

And what it is that they wanted to share.

"100,000 shares on Facebook.

So what do you want the audience to take away from from this video?

To stay positive, yeah right now.

What about you?

What do you want them to..." Delina: TEDx Bemidji means to me... the recognition of stories that people have and their abilities to relate to people and the amazing things that they do for the community.

Samantha: One of the special things about being in the TEDx space is that other communities do this same thing.

A team of us went to TEDx Fargo's event and got to see how their team curates, how their team prepares for an event experience.

And really take part as an audience member to feel that excitement and that energy that we wanted to bring to our event.

Eric: Well from I can speak to me personally.

I knew most of the seven people who were up there on the stage and I learned things about them that I didn't know before.

And it was just really powerful to spread a message in a community in a really concise way.

It brings the community together and makes the community have collective understanding.

John: We wanted to provide a platform to share ideas in our community.

And we wanted to challenge our community to be engaged, and be present, and show up and take part in what's going on.

Samantha: Chris Anderson, he's the curator of TED talks.

I was listening to a webinar recently and he talks about the most curious communities are usually the most productive and communicate with each other the best.

So what I think TEDx brings to a community is curiosity and exploration.

We have an event dedicated to getting you out of your normal routine, getting you out of your bubble and experiencing something different.

Something that you might like, that you may have never thought of before.

But you get to do it in the comfort of your own community with your friends and neighbors.

"Just think of what you can do, if you look around to see where you can impact change.

So thank you all."

Eric: I think if I was to do it again or give advice to somebody who's doing it, try to distill your thoughts quickly.

Try to get to the point quicker.

I tend to be a creative thinker and my expansive ideas went in all directions.

And it was really useful to try to find my north star early.

Tammy: If I could relay anything about TEDx Bemidji to a layperson who's never heard a TED talk or doesn't really understand what TEDx Bemidji is.

Is that it's about more than the speakers.

It's about the experience of being in that room with let's say two or three other hundred people.

Who are hearing the same words being spoken that you are but might have a different perception or take on those words.

And that the conversation continues after but that you both have the same starting point.

That would be my wish and my hope for the future of the Bemidji community.

Is that we can continue to have those kind of starting points to continue the conversations.

Because there's some really tough topics here, as there are everywhere.

Delina: I think TEDx Bemidji creates a community in Bemidji.

We are viable, that we are successful, that we are important and that we care.

Samantha: One of the things that TEDx Bemidji 2018 did for our communities is bring them together.

What I think is so special about TEDx in general, is it's a platform that brings cross-sections of the community together.

It's not just an event for business people, it's not just an event for academics.

It's an event for artists, for musicians, for performers, for students, for activists, for anyone.

Like we get to bring all of those people with different backgrounds together in the same room and hopefully they bump into new people and have a conversation.

That's what TEDx brings to a community.

"So to end our time together here, I'm going to bring the chime one more time.

We're going to take three more breaths and I invite you to notice and think about what pebbles you can toss into our pond.

thank you so much."

John: I think as a video producer, the moment that the event wraps up and you can kind of push yourself away from the video switcher.

And take a deep breath and be like and we're clear.

You know kind of that moment you see on tv where the film thing comes down and all clear.

And you can kind of take a deep breath.

That was a personal relieving moment.

Another thing that Sam and I talked about is we had a very engaging audience.

Like we talked about after the event is they laughed at all the right, places they clapped at all the right places, you heard oohs and awes.

And to see that come together in real life is like it's something you can't really plan for.

You can put all the pieces in their places and hope it happens.

But I don't think you can necessarily force it to happen.

And I think we lucked out and we had a good audience that was there to support our speakers.

And that really is a balance you need to have.

Delina: I felt like it was a local event and which is different from doing events outside of your community.

Because I think a lot of times because they're your neighbor and they're people that you know, that you don't really get the appreciation that you deserve.

Because you work so hard and people say "oh you know that's just the way she is you know."

But the people outside of the community can say "oh you know Delina works so hard and they can recognize that."

So when we can come together amongst ourselves and to say hey, I know you work really hard that really means a lot.

Tammy: My hope for the future of TEDx Bemidji is that we can do it again.

So my hope would be to build on the foundation of 2017 and 2018 and bring it into 2021, 2022.

And keep the conversation going and build on that momentum from 2018.

Let's keep the momentum that we created today going into our community, go!

Scott: Thank you so much for watching.

Join us again next time on Common Ground.

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