There is a first time for everything. Uganda last Saturday was part of a global movement that was taking place around the world. Uganda for the first time was able to host TEDxWomen.
TEDxWomen is a part of the nonprofit TED devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. The TEDx program gives communities, organizations and individuals the opportunity to stimulate dialogue through TED-like experiences at the local level. TEDx events are planned and coordinated independently.TEDxWomen event on the other hand is a TEDx event featuring the webcast of TEDxWomen. With collaboration with TEDxWomen,these events are hosted worldwide and independently.
Uganda ‘s event like the many TEDx programs that happened on the December 1st was organized independently. The main organizer for Uganda was Esther Patricia Akello assisted by Sarah Kiden and Maureen Agena. It also had a name unique to Uganda:- TEDxKiraTownWomen.
I spoke to Uganda’s main event organizer and she had this to say ::
How did this go for you?
I have never been to any TED event before. This was my first and I was basically learning on the job. The whole organizing and preparation has been based on the TED videos that I have watched and the TED rules and guidelines. it has been a good learning experience and I must say I look forward to organizing many more events like this.
How did you start this?
We were just having a casual chat and we realized that we as women had done nothing this year. We needed to do something about for the women and the community in Uganda. We had been sharing the TED talk videos amongst ourselves and we realized that much as we have had TED talks in Kampala, they have not been that popular. They have been happening, but people do not know about them. So that is when we decided to give this a try.
On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate this event?
For a first time and because none of us has ever attended a TED global event, I would give it a 9. I think that we gave it our best.
Any challenges?
Our biggest challenge was mobilization. We were limited in terms of tools to get the word out. We only used Social Media. We were helped a lot by our friends on social media.
Next TED event:
First quarter of 2013
For tweets on details of the event please use the hash tag #TEDxKTW and do follow @TEDxKiraTownWomen. They do have a lot in store.