TEDxSUNY Oswego will launch with six inspiring TEDx speakers from 2 to 5 p.m. on April 11 in the Sheldon Hall ballroom, but the seeds for the series began long ago and far away when Eason Lee was a teenager in Malaysia.

Lee started watching TEDx talks as a youngster and decided, “when I was 15, I wanted to give a TEDx talk to spread inspiration on the big stage,” he recalled. “That dream started moving toward reality when I came to SUNY Oswego.”

A master of business administration student, Lee’s support from friends, colleagues and mentors, as well as work and involvement, resulted in learning his dream would come true in early 2025. But not before his initial application was rejected and he incorporated feedback to finally succeed in holding a local edition of the world’s foremost speaker series. He takes it as just one more lesson in persistence.

“Bringing the spirits of TEDx to SUNY Oswego means joining the center of innovation of more than 42 million followers,” Lee said. “TEDx has created more than 30,000 local events across the world since 2009, and has been viewed more than 8 billion times. It’s the most powerful measure for spreading ideas.”

The live event in the Sheldon Hall ballroom is open to 100 people and will feature networking opportunities with speakers and leaders, as well as refreshments and swag of SUNY Oswego items. Tickets, available via the university box office, cost $20 for SUNY Oswego students and $25 for all others.

The event will also stream live on SUNY Oswego’s YouTube channel, youtube.com/sunyoswegovideo, thanks to a partnership between student-run TV station WTOP-10 TV and the Office of Communications and Marketing.

Speakers and topics will include:

  • Aunrée Jacques Laurent Houston, marketing operations executive at Netflix, life enrichment coach and SUNY Oswego alumnus: "The Ingredients of Purpose"
  • Yonggang Wang, meteorologist, climatologist, and associate professor of meteorology at SUNY Oswego: "Chasing the Snow: Exploring the Science and Adventure of Lake Effect Snow"
  • Christopher Stein, assistant professor of technology at SUNY Oswego, landscape designer, artist and two-time Oswego alumnus: "Surviving Technology - Tools for Life"
  • Natalia Lewandowska, chair of the NANOGrav Noise Budget Working Group, Shineman Planetarium director and assistant professor of physics and astronomy at SUNY Oswego: "The Timekeepers of the Universe"
  • Aiden R.J. Wilson, SUNY Oswego Student Association President, international student from Bahamas: "Sowing Seeds and Reaping Opportunities"
  • Robert Simmons III, vice president of U.S. social impact and community engagement at National Grid and executive director of the National Grid Foundation: "Creating Dreams for Progress" 

Edited versions of each talk will screen later on TEDx’s popular YouTube channel, Lee noted.

Team effort

Themed "Ideas Move People," the inaugural TEDxSUNY Oswego brings nearly 40 people and 12 departments together to make the dream of many possible.

Lee took additional inspiration in going to TEDxOneonta and TEDxRochester in the past couple of years, and after talking to the organizer of the latter was very encouraged. SUNY Oswego seemed like the perfect next institution to join the TEDx network.

“We’re in higher education and everybody here wants to progress,” Lee explained. “We believe ideas change everything, ideas create progress and ideas move people.”

When he finally received the go-ahead, he compared the next step to assembling a team of superheroes, “the best people with the biggest passion,” Lee explained. “I told people we were looking for one main thing: passion. It’s the most reliable thing you can get from a person.”

The resulting cross-campus collaboration has made a lot of things happen quickly to prepare for the April 11 event.

“There is a team of nearly 40 people who all excel in their own field to make this happen,” he said. “This is the best team we could get together, students, staff, faculty and leaders all coming together to inspire the community.”

Wanting to ensure that it would become an annual event, Lee wanted a deep roster that would include returning students. Meet Patel, a double major in information science and business administration, will lead planning for the anticipated TEDxSUNY Oswego 2026. Continuity is important because Lee would love to see the program become a long-term fixture.

“We want to make this a permanent event that is available through SUNY Oswego,” Lee noted. “We’re business students, so we were working on a succession plan since day one. Ideas are permanent and transformative throughout generations, so why not use TEDx as one of the most powerful programs for spreading ideas, to create progress with ideas.”

Lee noted this would not happen without sponsors such as the Division of Student Affairs, Office of Admissions and Auxiliary Services. Additional partners include Campus Events and Conference Services and its Box Office, the Technology Department, Campus Technology Services, Facilities Services, and the School of Communication, Media and the Arts.

As it is a formal event, Lee was pleased to work with the campus Students Helping Oz Peers (SHOP) pantry to make professional attire available for attendees.

Ultimately, Lee foresees a day that will uplift all those who attend in the greater campus and surrounding community.

“Attendees will enjoy a very intentional conversation to be inspired,” Lee said. “They will see six remarkable speakers with transformative ideas on stage talking about progress. And those making it in person will meet remarkable people who can keep the ideas and progression going.”