TEDxLahore Team will upload all the talks on 31st August 2010. Those who couldn’t attend the event should definitely take out some time to listen the “Ideas Worth Sharing.”

It was late 2005 when I started promoting entrepreneurship, social media and startups amongst the techies in Lahore. I came up with a name called “Technology Entrepreneurs Den (TED)” for our meetups but little did I know that there was already a global phenomenon known as TED. I got to know about it when few people asked me if I am coming up with a local TED event. I had to drop down the name but at least it introduced me to the wonderful TED Platform and since then I have listened around 80-90 phenomenal TED Talks.

TED is a small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out in 1984 as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences — the TED Conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Oxford UK each summer — TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and Open TV Project, the inspiring TEDx program and the annual TED Prize.

The TED Conference, held annually in Long Beach, is still the heart of TED. More than a thousand people now attend — indeed, the event sells out a year in advance — and the content has expanded to include science, business, the arts and the global issues facing our world. Over four days, 50 speakers each take an 18-minute slot, and there are many shorter pieces of content, including music, performance and comedy. There are no breakout groups. Everyone shares the same experience. It shouldn’t work, but it does. It works because all of knowledge is connected. Every so often it makes sense to emerge from the trenches we dig for a living, and ascend to a 30,000-foot view, where we see, to our astonishment, an intricately interconnected whole.

Last year in July, when Asim Fayaz told me that a license has been acquired, I was overjoyed that finally we would have a platform to share ideas and reach out to masses. Asim did invite me to earlier events at LUMS and Kinnaird which were held on July 25 2009 and February 23 2010 respectively but few professional commitments didn’t let me join both the events. On May 22, 2010, I got an email from Asim for the third event. I decided the very day that this time over I’ll definitely register for TEDxLahore and make it to the event.

The best thing was that Asim had a humungous plan for this one unlike previous events. Last month, I got to know that 3 other friends would be amongst the top management as well. Tajdar O. Chaudry is there for PR, Conventional Media Relations and spamming our twitter feeds. If you see good publicity on TV and Radio Channels this time around, he’s the man behind all this.  Bilal Rashid performs the wonderful duty of adding “X” to the event and is standing besides the TEDxLahore Team with his brilliant photography and talent management skills.

Khurram Siddiqi, who’s a relatively new to my friends list, did a marvelous job in selecting the speakers for the event. He finally managed to convince few females to speak at the event. Moreover, I was introduced to Nuzhat Saadia Siddiqui by them whom I have never met earlier but I guess I would definitely try to meet her on the event day if she’s free from the volunteer tasks to know more about the Mobile and Door Jamming programs that Khurram has worked on in order to avoid any disturbance during the event.  The ever humble Jazib Zahir, the COO of TinTash has never failed to impress me. If it’s an entrepreneurial effort of any sort, he’s there for you without any attitude.

The TEDxLahore received around 900 applications till 22nd July against 270 seats and the successful applicants have been informed. I would like to congratulate Asim for assembling a dream team and then putting up a marvelous effort into the event with all the volunteers. This team of professional and student volunteers surely deserve kudos. Those who want to know more about the event should watch and listen the following links and I would appreciate if no one from accepted audience drops out. The event would include some good short films and musical performances apart from the inspirational & motivational talks. If you are not coming, please inform the TEDxLahore Team. There are definitely hundreds of people waiting for this opportunity to come to them.

Those in Islamabad can join the Islamabad Viewing Party at  Civil Junction (Near Jinnah Supper Market, F-7/3) whereas Karachiites can watch the live feed at The Second Floor (T2F) in DHA, Karachi. Live stream of the event will be hosted at the Pakistani Embassy in the Netherlands as well. The event would be held on July 31, 2010 from 2:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. (PST) at Ali Institute of Education, Lahore.

A report on TEDxLahore by Rabia Mahmood of Express 24/7

TEDxLahore Team on Express 24/7’s “The Morning Show” with Waqas Rafique

Coffee Republic with Aysha Raja – TEDxLahore Team’s interview on City FM 89

Adding to it, it’s not about us writing for our favorites. We welcome other fellow entrepreneurs, mentors, professionals and organizations who wish to be part of the community to get in touch with us and we’ll issue them personal or company accounts to log in their stuff.