Recycle Runway Blog

My Second TEDx Talk! Published: 02.21.2013 at 10:30 am by Nancy Judd

In November 2012 I gave my second TEDx talk at an event called TEDxAcequiaMadre in Santa Fe, NM. My first TEDx talk was in Albuquerque (TEDXABQ).

If you are not familiar with TED talks they are global conferences focused on “ideas worth spreading.” TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design, the beginning of their inspiring mission reads: “We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we’re building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world’s most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other.” It is a great honor to be part of this community! TED talks can be viewed for free at www.TED.com.  In 2009 local, self-organized conferences called TEDx events began internationally. As of the end of 2012, more than 16,000 talks have been given at more than 5,000 TEDx events in 1,200 cities in 133 countries.

Having given one TEDx talk already I did feel more prepared, but it still took a tremendous amount of time to write, reflect and practice. Since it is required that you memorize your talk, NO reading or notes, I spent 100s of hours practicing. Giving a TED talk is a commitment and experience unlike any other I have had!

Crime Scene and the Caution Dress
in the Atlanta Airport Exhibition, 2012

In my presentation I focused on a garment I created in 2012 called “Crime Scene” for my exhibition in the Atlanta Airport. The dress is part of a mini-collection made from police tape– the other dress, the “Caution Dress”,  I  made to wear for TEDxABQ. For my talk in Santa Fe I wore a dress commissioned by Coca-Cola in 2006 called Pop Can Couture made from aluminum cans cut into flowers, leaves and petals and sewn to a dress made from canvas scraps.

I titled my TEDxAcequiaMadre talk: “Undressing the Crime Scene– Addressing how to Slow Climate Change”. I feel like it is the first time that I have addressed the climate crisis this directly in any of my presentations.

I used the dress, Crime Scene, to explore how we have poisoned both the body of Mother Earth and our own bodies. As I share in the talk, when researching this presentation I fell into an armageddon panic about what we have done to the planet and the myriad of overwhelming problems that humanity is facing as a result. However, after a couple of weeks I managed to find my way back to the essence of what my work is about: creating a positive way to address these serious issues that does not instill guilt nor fear but instead inspires hope and action.

I would love to hear your reflections on my talk in the comment box below!

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