For the City Times

STEVENS POINT — The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point will host its first TEDx event on Saturday, Feb. 17, offering seven speakers on topics with the theme “Small City, Big Ideas.”

The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Encore Room of the Dreyfus University Center. Organized by the TEDxUWSP student organization, in partnership with CREATE Portage County, the event is open to the public. Tickets are $35 for the public or $20 for students, which includes lunch and snacks. Tickets are available at http://tickets.uwsp.edu.

Vice Chancellor Al Thompson will be the master of ceremonies. Speakers, from university faculty members to marketing and human resources professionals, will discuss a variety of topics, including:

• Bat research and citizen science
• Branding and marketing
• Computer gaming
• Finding happiness on the job
• Gender studies and culture
• Learning, laughter and leadership
• Personal and professional growth

“Anyone who wants to learn and is willing to have an open mind about any topic is welcome to attend,” said Josh Nauber-Finch, a senior arts management and communication major and president of TEDxUWSP on campus. The organization hopes to give the campus and community a platform to express their ideas, he said.

The group has also held TEDx mini-series events at which the students viewed and discussed TED and TEDx recordings. To learn more, go to www.facebook.com/TEDxUWStevensPoint.

TEDx events were launched in 2009 to make independent, volunteer-organized TED talks available within communities. The TED organization began as a nonprofit conference in 1984, and now sponsors thousands of free presentations on YouTube on various topics.