Youth leader Shreya Joshi diagnoses a key source of political polarization in the US and shows why having "uncomfortable conversations" with people you disagree with is crucial to bridging the divide. "When we are able to recognize what...

Right now, hundreds of thousands of people are "stuck" in the US criminal justice system. They've completed all of their requirements for release, but nobody knows it because the system is run on old databases that don't talk to each...

Names like Bayard Rustin, Frances Thompson and William Dorsey Swann have been largely erased from US history, but they and other Black queer leaders played central roles in monumental movements like emancipation, civil rights and LGBTQ+...

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...

Actor and activist Fehinti Balogun pieces together multiple complex issues -- climate change, colonialism, systemic racism -- in a talk that's part spoken-word poem, part diagnosis of entrenched global problems. Seeing the connections is...

Climate action has historically had a gender-neutral lens, but this lack of intentionality allows underlying biases to sneak in and negatively impact women, says gender and climate researcher Zineb Sqalli. Using Vienna, Austria's...

Conservation champion and TED Fellow Adjany Costa is on a mission to empower Indigenous communities. Instead of imposing pre-designed policy and plans on local people, she says, conservation efforts should center those who know the land...

When the world goes fully electric, what happens to the cars, tools and livelihoods that rely on fossil fuels? Civil engineer and environmental sociologist Emily Grubert visualizes what a clean energy future will look like, outlining the...

Lawyers are advocates for their clients -- and, in court, they're usually the ones who do the talking. Should that always be the case? In an effort to shift this power dynamic, TED Fellow and legal aid activist Lam Ho shares how lawyers...

Nearly fifteen percent of the world's population lives with a disability, yet this massive chunk of humanity is still routinely excluded from opportunities. Sharing her experience growing up with an autistic sister, disability inclusion...

How can nonprofits accelerate their impact and move the needle on intractable problems? Looking to bring the urgency of a profit motive to every initiative, inclusive finance promoter Tolu Oyekan shows how scalable, data-driven solutions...

Several crises are set to define the next century -- but journalist Aaron Bastani believes we have the technological ability to meet our biggest challenges and create unprecedented levels of prosperity for all. He shows how we could get...

How do we make historically exclusive fields like classical music, fine arts or academic research more accessible to everyone? Education equalizer and violist Matthew Garcia thinks one way to remove barriers is to create free, virtual...

As the child of Holocaust survivors and a World War II refugee herself, peace builder Georgette Bennett was stunned by the human toll and tragedy of the Syrian civil war. She got to work, bringing together historical enemies to build an...

Women and girls with autism spectrum disorder often don't display the behaviors people typically associate with neurodivergence, greatly impacting when, how -- and if -- they are diagnosed. Autism acceptance advocate Kate Kahle makes the...

Global consumer strategist Aparna Bharadwaj shares a fascinating glimpse at under-the-radar affinities that transcend cultures and borders -- from the way people snack in China and Saudi Arabia to how people shop for clothes in the US...

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...

We know capitalism exacerbates injustice and inequality worldwide. So how can we fix it? Professor and social entrepreneur Manish Bhardwaj thinks we need to integrate "moral clarity" -- which he defines as "doing the right thing because...

When programmer Tiffani Ashley Bell learned that thousands of people in Detroit were facing water shutoffs because they couldn't afford to pay their bills, she decided to take action -- in the simplest, most obvious way possible. It's an...

There's something simple we can all do to help the planet -- and it's probably not what you think. With one-third of all the food we produce globally each year being thrown away, entrepreneur Tessa Clarke believes that sharing more and...

The women of Afghanistan are being persecuted under Taliban rule, but they're not standing down. Filmmaker Tamana Ayazi chronicles the harrowing reality of one women's rights advocate -- Zarifa Ghafari, Afghanistan's youngest female...

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:...

Is art worth it? "Hell yeah," says graphic novelist R. Alan Brooks -- art has the power to scare dictators, inspire multitudes and change hearts and minds across the world. Reflecting on his journey to become an artist at a time when the...

"For all that's ever been said about climate change, we haven't heard nearly enough about the psychological impacts of living in a warming world," says science writer Britt Wray. In this quick talk, she explores how climate change is...