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An Independently Organized TED Event

• Event Details

2023 Speaker Lineup

Speaker Topic - Financial Literacy in Education

Rushil Shah, Student - Junior at West Shore High School & Founder of Brevard Finance for Youth (Melbourne, FL)

Speaker Bio - An enthusiastic advocate of financial literacy, Rushil is an accomplished young speaker, leader, and researcher. The combination of his keen interest in personal finance and a passion for helping others achieve financial success has led him to conduct multi-disciplinary research involving financial decision-making, as well as work tirelessly to educate young people about the importance of financial literacy through coursework and publishing a book on the topic. Skilled at explaining difficult financial concepts in a simple manner for peers and younger generations alike, he is committed to helping young adults achieve financial freedom and success through his charismatic presentation and personal endeavors.

Speaker Topic - Pop Culture in Education

Casey Covel, Career Center Coordinator - Eastern Florida State College (Titusville, FL)

Speaker Bio - Casey L. Covel is a career center coordinator at Eastern Florida State College (EFSC) by day and Batman by night (at least, according to her personality type!). She earned national honors while completing her associate degree at EFSC, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in human communication through the University of Central Florida, and is pursuing a master’s degree in Media Psychology at Fielding University. Covel is an award-winning pop culture author of over 300 pieces, distributed through NACE, NCDA, AFC, and other publications. She also really, really loves sushi.

Speaker Topic - Workforce Development

Clinton Hatcher, Business Liason, Aerospace & Aviation - CareerSource Brevard (Melbourne, FL)

Speaker Bio - Always the thought-provoking communicator, Clinton works hard to partner with employers large and small to assist with finding and developing local talent. He loves to build relationships by helping employers solve problems and navigate within the workforce system. Clinton is a proud graduate of Eastern Florida State College, University of Central Florida, and the Leadership Brevard Class of 2021. Most recently, Clinton received the 4 under 40 Leadership Brevard Award 2023. In the community, Clinton is a member of his local church, Faith Life Outreach Christian Kathedral, Secretary of the National Space Club of Florida, board member of the Space Coast black chamber, Greater Palm Bay Chamber, and serves on the Young Professional’s Committee, Space Coast Young Professionals, for the Melbourne Regional Chamber. But most of all, Clinton is a family man to his lovely wife Tiffani, and beautiful daughter Myrrhiah (Mariah).

Speaker Topic - Community & Culture

Dr. Synthia Doaks, Director - Elevate Brevard (Rockledge, FL)

Speaker Bio - With 23 years of experience in education for private, public and nonprofit sectors, Dr. Doaks is an expert in collaboration and working with community partners to improve the lives of residents by increasing their access to post-secondary education and sustainable employment. She has also served as the Community Partnership School (CPS) Director at Endeavour Elementary where she was part of the team that secured funding for the first school-based health center in the area (Brevard Health Alliance). She is also a business adjunct instructor for Eastern Florida State College. Dr. Doaks has a BBA from Northwestern State University, an MBA from Webster University, and an Ed. D. in Executive Educational Leadership from the University of Central Florida. She serves on multiple boards throughout Brevard, including Brevard Health Alliance, Academic Anglers, Sustainable Workplace Alliance, and Space Coast Health Foundation’s Dental Taskforce. She was the recipient of the 2019 Children’s Champion Award of Distinction, the 2022 Harry T. and Harriette V. Moore Humanitarian of the Year in a Nonprofit, and was recently recognized by weVentures at Florida Tech as a 2023 Woman Who Rocks – Excellence in Community Service in Brevard County Florida. She is the mother of three adult daughters who are also educators and has two grandsons. She enjoys basketball, kayaking, camping and hiking, as well as reading, writing and researching.

Speaker Topic - Startup Ecosystems & Culture

Jarin Eisenberg, CEO - Groundswell Startups (Melbourne, FL)

Speaker Bio - Jarin is an expert in community revitalization and ecosystem building. Over the past 12 years, she has facilitated over 100 million dollars in public-private partnerships and has led the expansion of a high-tech incubator that has resulted in over 150 million dollars in venture capital investment, the creation of hundreds of high-paying jobs, and an additive manufacturing lab. She specializes in developing strategies, organizing and operating through a collective impact model, and bringing together government organizations, citizen stakeholders, private equity groups, and developers to facilitate meaningful and systemic change. She was the 2016 recipient of Lead Brevard’s 4 under 40 award and most recently, received the City of Melbourne’s Exceptional Citizen Award.

Speaker Topic - Innovations in Rebuilding the Environment

Daniel Kolodny, COO - Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program (Sebastian, FL)

Speaker Bio - Daniel graduated from the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) with a Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology and Aquaculture. He worked in fisheries management with the National Marine Fisheries and the Nez Perce Tribe for several years before witnessing the drastic changes to the Indian River Lagoon, which prompted him to return to FIT to earn his Master of Science in Environmental Resource Management. Daniel has also worked with Brevard County Natural Resources Department as a project manager for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Petroleum Restoration Program in groundwater cleanup. In 2019 he joined the IRLNEP as the Chief Operating Officer and Financial Officer and manages all budgets, grants, and contracts. He is an avid outdoorsman and can regularly be found on the Lagoon assisting in restoration activities and fishing.

Speaker Topic - Artificial Intelligence

Mike Mongo, AI herald, Author & Astronaut Candidate (Cape Canaveral, FL)

Speaker Bio - Astronaut-in-training, artist, and Cape Canaveral resident Mike Mongo is the author of "The Astronaut Instruction Manual" (Penguin Random House) and co-founder of global graffiti art brand OBEY. His new book, "My Conversation with Sherlock Holmes (An Instruction Manual for Talking with AI)," is written with AI co-author “Sherlock Holmes.”

When & Where

Cape Canaveral

May 11th, 2023

Time: 11AM - 5PMRadisson Resort at the Port Conference Center
8701 Astronaut Blvd, Cape Canaveral, FL 32920

Conference Center and event parking are located adjacent to the Radisson Hotel.

2023 EVENT PROGRAM

Join us for a day of inspiring talks, meet interesting people in the community, and enjoy live art and music entertainment.

Featured Local Artist - Derek Gores

EGAD Gallery & Workshops

Derek recycles magazines, maps, data and more in his lush portraits on canvas. The balance of detail and playfulness in each piece reveals Gores’ knack for discovery and for building seemingly endless puzzles into his works. Rearranging the scraps, he is able to form a sort of surrealist image, where from afar a nearly photo-realistic image comes into focus. However, as the viewer gets near, the small scraps reveal themselves to be other pictures, song lyrics, charts, patterns and more, and sweep your attention away down a new rabbit hole.Gores is a collaborator. He’s deeply invested in his home town Eau Gallie Arts District (EGAD) on the Space Coast of Florida, as well as in the larger global creative community, regularly engaging with blue chip brands, who value how Gores’ work engages the senses in a way words cannot.
Find out more about Derek

Featured Local Singer - Kristen Warren

Listen on Sound Cloud

Kristen Warren has performed in many venues across the US East Coast, including SOFAR NYC, SOFAR Atlanta and Florida Music Festival. In 2021 she headlined the Space Coast Music festival. It is through her music that she tries to uplift her listeners, encouraging them to "go for it, do it, be it!"Warren is the founder of BlackBox Blackout, which is an organization that celebrates Black creativity and hosts an annual month-long festival every February. She is also the founder of Mural series, which is a filmed performance series that features the work of local songwriters and muralists.Fun Fact: Kristen Warren also recently performed on the big TED stage! Check out her TED performance here! How hip-hop can make climate action cool

Preview of Community Artists Courtesy of Studios of Cocoa Beach

Event Tickets

$100

Price includes event entry and applicable tax.Limited audience size of 100 persons.
All TEDx Talks and Audience Experiences are subject to Live Recording.

• SOLD OUT

About Us

TEDx Team

TEDx Cape Canaveral is run by a small group of local volunteers and partners who are enthusiastic about sharing unique ideas with you, the community, and the world.

A skilled and experienced "orchestrator," Kristin's focus is on connecting the dots and helping others bring their ideas to life in a unique setting.

Kristin Savage, Licensee & Event Organizer

A charismatic and experienced TEDx facilitator, Costa knows how to lead the room into some fun and interesting conversations about our ideas worth sharing... as well as coaching our Speakers on TEDx-style storytelling!

Costa Michailidis, Emcee & Event Facilitator

Sarah brings us deep expertise in telling the Space Coast story via her background in magazine editing/ publishing, PR, and local event management. By combining her love for the Space Coast and content creation, Sarah's joined us to put a local edge on all things TEDx!

Sarah Levanti, Event Planning & Marketing Advisor

Part mystic, part merman, Andrew brings his experience supporting multiple TEDx events to our team. His unique perspective will help shape our digital storytelling, photography, and video production.

Andrew James Ferris, AV & Digital Event Advisor

Having grown up in Cocoa Beach with the original 7 astronauts and a full career in the space industry, Dale brings a wealth of
experience, a network, and his Philosophy degree, in the service of building a future here worthy of the name ‘Space Coast'.

Dale Ketcham, Senior Advisor

Jay brings his extensive background of crafting compelling stories and identifying key partners with street-smart simplicity. Lucky for us, he is also a TEDx Event veteran, having been a Co-Producer who has coached several, globally known, TEDx Speakers.

Jay Blumberg, Advisor - Partnerships

Special Thanks

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