TED Talks
TED: The sustainable brilliance of Indigenous design | Manu Peni
When human rights advocate Manu Peni returned to Papua New Guinea from abroad, he built a home for himself using modern techniques -- and promptly learned a harsh lesson on how the newest ideas aren't always the best ideas. Peni calls...
TED Talks
TED: The wheat field that could change the world | Guntur V. Subbarao
Crop physiologist Guntur V. Subbarao and his team have developed an antibiotic-infused strain of wheat that naturally combats harmful, fertilizer-eating bacteria -- a "monster" contributor to climate change. Learn more about how this...
TED Talks
TED: Gourmet food for the final frontier | Phnam Bagley
What does an in-flight meal look like when you're traveling to Mars? Designer Phnam Bagley envisions a future where astronauts have nourishing, flavorful food reminiscent of home -- a giant leap from their current staple of...
TED Talks
TED: The global opportunity to accelerate Africa's sustainable future | Vanessa Nakate
Climate justice activist Vanessa Nakate sits down with former president of Ireland Mary Robinson for an enlightening, intergenerational conversation about the state of the climate crisis. Nakate paints a picture of life in her home...
TED Talks
TED: 5 values for repairing the harms of colonialism | Jing Corpuz
Indigenous wisdom can help solve the planetary crises that colonialism started, says lawyer Jennifer "Jing" Corpuz. Her ancestors, the Kankanaey-Igorot people of the Philippines, are known for creating the Banaue Rice Terraces:...
PBS
This super strong concrete could repair aging bridges. Here’s what’s standing in the way
There's a dire need to repair aging infrastructure in the U.S., and an innovative building material could be a game changer. Embedded with steel fibers, ultra-high performance concrete is about five to 10 times stronger than standard...
TED Talks
Suzanne Lee: Why "biofabrication" is the next industrial revolution
What if we could "grow" clothes from microbes, furniture from living organisms and buildings with exteriors like tree bark? TED Fellow Suzanne Lee shares exciting developments from the field of biofabrication and shows how it could help...
TED Talks
TED: A concrete idea to reduce carbon emissions | Karen Scrivener
Concrete is the second most-used substance on Earth (behind water), and it's responsible for eight percent of the world's carbon footprint. Cement researcher Karen Scrivener shares the research behind a pioneering new kind of cement...
TED Talks
TED: A vision for sustainable energy in Africa | Chibeze Ezekiel
Africa needs new energy sources to fuel its development, but the continent should invest in renewable energy instead of cheap, polluting alternatives like coal, says climate inclusion activist Chibeze Ezekiel. He tells the story of how...
TED Talks
TED: The bad math of the fossil fuel industry | Tzeporah Berman
We currently have enough fossil fuels to progressively transition off of them, says climate campaigner Tzeporah Berman, but the industry continues to expand oil, gas and coal production and exploration. With searing passion and...
TED Talks
TED: The real hotbed of innovation (hint: it's not big cities) | Xiaowei R. Wang
To see and understand the countryside is a crucial part of moving towards a more livable future for everyone, says coder, artist and organizer Xiaowei R. Wang. They've observed that some of the most careful, thoughtful innovation is...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why don't we cover the desert with solar panels? | Dan Kwartler
Stretching over roughly nine million square kilometers and with sands reaching temperatures of up to 80° Celsius, the Sahara Desert receives about 22 million terawatt hours of energy from the Sun every year. That's well over 100 times...
TED Talks
TED: How green hydrogen could end the fossil fuel era | Vaitea Cowan
As climate change accelerates, finding clean alternatives to fossil fuels is more urgent than ever. Social entrepreneur Vaitea Cowan believes green hydrogen is the answer. Watch as she shares her team's work mass producing electrolyzers...
TED Talks
TED: Fashion has a pollution problem -- can biology fix it? | Natsai Audrey Chieza
Natsai Audrey Chieza is a designer on a mission -- to reduce pollution in the fashion industry while creating amazing new things to wear. In her lab, she noticed that the bacteria Streptomyces coelicolor makes a striking red-purple...
TED Talks
TED: The crucial intersection of climate and capital | Nili Gilbert
The financial sector often talks of decarbonizing investment portfolios as a way to fight climate change. But portfolios can be "cleaned" without having any real impact on the problem, says investment expert Nili Gilbert. Bringing...
TED Talks
TED: A 3-part plan to take on extreme heat waves | Eleni Myrivili
The deadliest severe weather phenomenon is something you might not realize: extreme heat. Eleni Myrivili, chief heat officer of the city of Athens, Greece, explains that extreme heat and heat waves are often overlooked because they're...
TED Talks
TED: The future of good food in China | Matilda Ho
Fresh food free of chemicals and pesticides is hard to come by in China: in 2016, the Chinese government revealed half a million food safety violations in just nine months. In the absence of safe, sustainable food sources, TED Fellow...
TED Talks
Markus Mutz: How supply chain transparency can help the planet
Given the option, few would choose to buy products that harm the earth -- yet it's nearly impossible to know how most consumer goods are made or where they're sourced from. That's about to change, says supply chain innovator Markus Mutz....
TED Talks
TED: A provocative way to finance the fight against climate change | Michael Metcalfe
Will we do whatever it takes to fight climate change? Back in 2008, following the global financial crisis, governments across the world adopted a "whatever it takes" commitment to monetary recovery, issuing $250 billion worth of...
TED Talks
Treat design as art - Paola Antonelli
* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences. Paola Antonelli, design curator at New York's Museum of Modern Art, wants to spread her appreciation of design --...
TED-Ed
The life cycle of a cup of coffee | A.J. Jacobs
How many people does it take to make a cup of coffee? For many of us, all it takes is a short walk and a quick pour. But this simple staple is the result of a globe-spanning process whose cost and complexity are far greater than you...
TED Talks
Bjarke Ingels: Floating cities, the LEGO House and other architectural forms of the future
Design gives form to the future, says architect Bjarke Ingels. In this worldwide tour of his team's projects, journey to a waste-to-energy power plant (that doubles as an alpine ski slope) and the LEGO Home of the Brick in Denmark -- and...
TED Talks
TED: Climate action needs new frontline leadership | Ozawa Bineshi Albert
We can't rely on those who created climate change to fix it, says climate justice organizer Ozawa Bineshi Albert. An Indigenous woman living in the heart of oil and gas country in the US, she's observed an alarming disconnect between...
TED Talks
TED: Language shouldn't be a barrier to climate action | Sophia Kianni
Most scientific literature is written only in English, creating an alarming knowledge gap for the 75 percent of the world who don't speak it. That's a big problem for climate change -- because it's hard to take action on something you...