TedX Jackson Hole

It was hard to leave the clear fall day and enter the theater of the Center for the Arts yesterday evening, but I was so appreciative that I did. TedX Jackson Hole was centered around the theme of discovery, little snippets of talks about everything from ethno-medicine to social media, bringing the topics of science, art, culture, and social issues together into one evening of captivation and inspiration. And these were all local individuals, save two.  Ted talks are formated to be only ten to twenty minutes in length, enough to relay information and leave the listener wanting to learn more.  I have been inspired more than once by a Ted talk, this one by Elizabeth Gilbert has been one I have returned to often. 

I left the night with my mind whirring in many directions, namely with the urge to do something that makes a difference for others, that makes the world a brighter place. How to use my gifts to bring transformation of some sort. Some of the most touching....

--Leticia Liera and Isabel Zumel created College Bound Latinas to work with young Latinas to encourage them in their capableness and ability to shun statistics and pursue a college education. Pure inspiration from these young women and their champions in their pursuit of their dreams. 

--Paul Allen Cox who heads up the Institute for EthnoMedicine located in Jackson, WY who is doing pioneering work in the understanding and curing of ALS and Lou Gerigs disease. The Institute's study  of remote Pacific island villages with high levels of ALS led to the consideration of BMAA—a toxic amino acid—as a possible trigger for certain neurodegenerative illnesses in genetically vulnerable individuals. They found that BMAA is produced by cyanobacteria which occur throughout the world. 

--Amelia Terrapin who is the founder of Mobius, a movement-based science curriculum that strives to influence the typical ways of learning in the classroom and imbue children with the sense that science can be understood through a creative lens, rather than at the desk or through a test or reading. 

I went home in the crisp darkness full of warmth, feeling fortunate to live in a electrifying community and full of my own potential.