Wednesday September 24, 2014:
My morning translation class is about to start when my
friend Anna-Maria comes in and asks me if I am going to the TEDx Beirut Event
happening the following week. I tell her that I don’t know much about it so she
starts explaining everything to me: TEDx is an event in the spirit of the TED
events that are all about sharing ideas worth spreading. It’s mainly a
conference with many speakers and performers from different fields who come to
reflect on reality and encourage change. She also told me that the registration
happens online and after doing it one can pay online or at one of the many
points of sale within 48 hours of registering.
When I came back home I checked the event and I don’t know
why I said that I would go. I had a few hours left because the last chance to
register was at midnight. Luckily I got a seat and the next day I paid for it
at Malik’s Bookshop next to my university.
Saturday September 27, 2014:
I woke up early and went down to my university, USEK, where the
event was taking place. I registered and got my goodie bag then sat on a bench
under a tree. A stranger came and sat next to me then we had a little conversation
and got to know each other. Later, my friend Anna-Maria came and we had some
croissants and pink doughnuts with sprinkles on them for breakfast (we know
that we shouldn’t have eaten the doughnuts because of all the calories they had
but we weren’t able to resist them. They were delicious) Then we entered and
took 2 seats in the second row and waited for the conference to start. The
theatre was packed with people (1200 attendees!). One after the other speakers
started to pass and all of the talks were interesting.
The ones I liked most
were Jihad Kawas’ impressive story (He built his first application when he was
13 years old and started his own company at the age of 15! He seriously made my
friend Anna-Maria and me want to kill ourselves for being 20 and 21 years old
with no achievements to our account).
I was also moved by
Loubna Izzidin’s story about her mother getting terminally ill with cancer and
her life changing experience with home hospice care (Her mother’s sickness and
death inspired her to build SANAD, her own hospice care center in Lebanon).
Another speaker that really impressed me was Sarah Hermez,
founder of Creative Space Beirut, a free fashion design school that “makes
designers and not clothes”. She really caught my attention with the way she
sees fashion and with her struggle to provide equal learning opportunities for
all.
Last but not least, I loved Ashekman’s speech. These two
twin brothers (entrepreneurs, singers, graffiti artists, and inventors of the
calli-graphiti) made me happy for they promote the Arabic language, poetry, and
literature. In a country where people are giving up their native language and
are preferring French and English to it, I was happy to see that some people
are still proud of their mother tongue and are not afraid to show it. As a
translator who works mostly with the Arabic language, I consider it my mission
to encourage people to speak, read and write in Arabic. So what they did do
really made an impression on me.
Other than the speakers, there were also performers who participated
to the event: Fayez Zouheiry, one of the best human beat boxers I have ever
seen (He made the crowd really go crazy while watching him sing and make the
music at the same time); Karim Khneisser who took us on a journey around the
world with his exceptional music instruments; and Laban – Live Lactic Culture
who made the crowd laugh out loud (and the interpreter go crazy I think) with
their improvised theatre.
Monday September 29, 2014:
After participating to the TEDx Beirut 2014 event, I can say
without exaggeration that my life has been changed. This experience really made
me rethink many things in my life, the way I look at everyday events, the way I
perceive death, etc. It has really opened my eye on the reality and the
challenges of life in the 21st century. Because of TEDx Beirut, I am
now really motivated to make achievements of my own and to help my community
grow and develop. That’s why I invite each and every one of you to take part in
the next TEDx event in your community. You won’t regret it, I promise.
For more information about TEDx Beirut:
Website: Tedxbeirut.com
Facebook: TEDxBeirut
Youtube Channel: youtube.com/TEDxBeirut
Instagram: tedxbeirut
For more information about the speakers:
-
Ashekman :
o
Facebook: ASHEKMAN
o
Website: ashekman.com
-
Jihad Kawas:
o
Twitter: JihadKawas
o
Website: saily.co
-
Lubna Izzidin:
o
Facebook:
SANADHospiceLebanon
o
Website: sanadhospice.org
-
Sarah Hermez:
o
Facebook:
CreativeSpaceBeirut
o
Twitter: CreativeSpaceB
o
Website:
creativespacebeirut.com
