By Christian Kallen
The local licensee of a global conversation brand, TEDx Sonoma County returns to the Jackson Theater on Saturday with a new lineup of shamans, scientists, influencers and advocates to expand the minds of attendees.
That may sound dramatic, but consider the first presenters to take the stage: West County musician and “shaman” (that’s what the program notes say) Jens Jarvie, and winemaker Ross Hallek. The vintner will discuss wine as an “entheogen,” offering a pathway into the God within. Dionysian revels ensue, at least in the imaginations of the audience. In Sonoma County, that’s preaching to the choir.
Strange as it may seem, this could provide the perfect overture for this year’s TEDx topic—“Bridging Forward: Past, Present and Future.” Or as executive producer Marilyn Nagel put it when we spoke last week, “Our theme is about lessons from the past that help us understand our present, and make our current lives better.”
Nagel has produced the annual lecture event at Sonoma County Day School (between Windsor and the Airport) for about 10 years now, initially as a volunteer but for the past several years as executive producer. It seems like a good fit: After working as the chief diversity officer at Cisco Systems, she became CEO of a Bay Area advocacy organization for women called Watermark. In that role, Nagel launched the first California Conference for Women in 2012. (She noted that this year’s TEDx Sonoma takes place on International Women’s Day, March 8.)
Head, Heart and Humor
From Hallek’s Dionysian preamble, the afternoon series of 12 guests unfolds in a series of 10-17 minute presentations, each weaving a tapestry of the theme—finding inspiration, finding community and facing a future together. The speakers don’t belabor their points, but use the touchstones of what Nagel believes are the ingredients of all successful TED talks: head, heart and humor.
“Even though you [the speaker] might be in the technology category, is your talk going to be humorous?” Nagel asked. “Is it going to be something that stimulates thinking? That’s the head—or is it going to be pulling on people’s heartstrings, because it’s a story that evokes a struggle to overcome?”
As in the past few years, Aniysa Fritz will play the role of emcee, deftly shifting the audience’s attention and expectations from what they have just heard to what’s coming next. Like Nagel, she is a “co-licensee” of the TEDx brand, based on the original TED talks from 1990—so named for the convergence of Technology, Entertainment and Design. Licenses for TEDx talks are free, but recipients agree to abide by the format and follow guidelines for curation, speaker coaching, event organizing and more.
Applications to speak start coming in at once following each year’s TEDx event. As many as 200 applicants are winnowed down to the dozen or so presenters, who Hagel and a small team of coaches work with on “crystalizing” their talks, as she puts it—refining their message, shaping its delivery, focusing its point.
Familiar Ground
There is a certain brand consistency to a TED Talk—the smooth brevity, the anecdotes that turn into realizations and a sort of mental tap-on-the-shoulder instead of a punchline. But the success of that brand demonstrates that it works: TEDx Sonoma County almost always sells out. Started in 2012, this will be its 13th year of speakers.
Though it’s Nagel’s job “to work with each speaker to solidify how can they convey their idea in a way that is going to have high impact,” she doesn’t act alone. “We have a wonderful cadre of speaker coaches who do presentation coaching professionally,” she said. “When to, you know, use hand gestures or when to pause for emphasis,” and so forth.
Demonstrating a concept, a topic or a theme through spoken presentations is familiar ground for her. “I was very used to convening groups around the theme and bringing together speakers that would share ideas,” she said. “Similar to TED’s theme of spreading big ideas and stimulating thinking.”
Attendees know to settle in for a series of thought-provoking speakers, who sometimes break the mold of a TED talker. Included this Saturday afternoon are the 24-member Mannakan Theater and Dance troupe, a standup magician, Jay Alexander, and a two-person presentation from Jamie Woolf and Christopher Bell on “bad bosses.”
Though their talk is not overtly political, Nagel said it’s difficult not to draw lessons from their description of someone who is so used to hearing only “yes” that they stop listening to people who challenge them.
“I think there are so many nuggets that help us build that resiliency that we need right now,” Nagel said. “Our work is all volunteer, and I don’t mind putting in all the hours that I do for this work because I love where I live.”
“If we build our muscle of community and resilience, then I think we are best able to meet whatever comes our way, whether that’s on the national stage or locally,” Nagel added. “It’s another way to build Sonoma Strong, without a tragedy having to happen here.”
TEDx Sonoma is Saturday, March 8, from 1:30-4:30pm, at Jackson Theater, 4400 Day School Place, Santa Rosa. Tickets are $25 (virtual) to $75 (in person), plus fees, at tedxsonomacounty.com.
