TEDx returning to Carson City

TEDx is back in Carson City.

Tickets for the Oct. 13 event go on sale Sept. 5 at 10 a.m., available either at the Brewery Arts Center or online at TEDxCarsonCity.com.

Tickets are $100 and include continental breakfast and lunch at the all-day event starting at 9 a.m. Last year’s debut event sold out within hours. The event will also be streamed live online at www.TEDxCarsonCity.com.

This is the second year Carson City is taking part in the worldwide, multi-venue event about “ideas worth spreading.”

The theme for this year’s TEDx is The Agora, the ancient Greek word meaning “open place of assembly,” where citizens gather to exchange goods, hear announcements and exchange ideas.

Carson City’s event, at the Brewery Arts Center’s Maizie Harris Jesse Black Box Theater, will feature 13 speakers, including five CEOs, artists and educators, who will each speak for about 15 minutes inspired by the year’s topic:

Jamie Bianchini will talk about his life philosophy he calls Live Big, Give Big. Bianchini, a Carson City resident and entrepreneur, wrote “A Bicycle Built for Two Billion,” a memoir of his 8-year, 80-country trip he called Peace Pedalers. Bianchini rode a tandem bicycle and more than 1,000 strangers took him up on his invitation to pedal it with him, including his future wife, Cristina.

Tim Carson is an advocate for rural communities and the challenges they face. Carson is the CEO of Alberta Association of Agricultural Societies, a Canadian non-profit that advocates and provides resources for the 293 agricultural groups in Alberta. He lives on 80 acres north of Edmonton, Alberta with his wife and two sons.

Art Castañares is founder and CEO, Manzana Energy, Inc., a development company specializing in environmentally-responsible projects. He’s also publisher of La Prensa San Diego, the region’s only bilingual Hispanic newspaper, and previously worked in politics, including 13 years as staff for the California State Legislature and 20 years as a campaign strategist. Castañares is also one of three partners in the Western Nevada Futbol Club, the newest team in the United Premier Soccer League based in Carson City.

Corrado De Gasperis is executive chairman and CEO of Comstock Mining Inc., a diversified, community-based, network of mining, construction, real estate, hospitality, and technology businesses. A former KPMG LLC certified public accountant, De Gasperis has more than 30 years of experience working to transform and turnaround businesses, including work with General Electric and Union Carbide Corp.

Drinking with Clowns is a collaboration between Baldo Bobadilla, a Paraguayan singer/songwriter, and Kristias Trujillo, a Mexican drummer and composer, who are joined by Alejandro Jimenez, a percussionist from Colombia, and Martin Arroyo, a bassist from Mexico. Bobadilla is also executive director of Future Kind, an organization dedicated to bringing educational opportunities to less fortunate individuals.

Grace Hayes is a Nevada performing artist, actress, singer and songwriter, pianist and ukuleleist, spoken-word poet and comedian specializing in satire. The video of her unofficial “Reno Anthem,” a sometimes facetious tribute to the city, is available on her Facebook page.

Tamara Holmes, a Carson City resident, is a dancer and performing artist who has managed a dance and acrobatic studio for 15 years and currently works as a teacher-guide in a local charter school. She said she has a steadfast belief in the healing power of positive human connection, cooperation and creativity.

Deana Hoover is a local artist who works primarily in oil paint, graphite, and ceramic sculpture. Her art focuses on nature and combines the style of realism with techniques of the abstract. She also teaches painting, sculpting, and drawing at the BAC and Artsy Fartsy Creative Center, where her art is available. Her work is also online at deanahoover.com.

Otto Kelly played football for the University of Nevada, Reno and then professionally for the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs before an injury ended his career. Kelly returned to Reno where he spent 11 years as Washoe County’s Department of Juvenile Services’ first Gang Specialist/Community Outreach Counselor and in 1999 become a full-time pastor. He currently serves as chaplain for UNR Athletics, and is co-founder of the Northern Nevada Christian Men’s Alliance, and serves on the boards of the African American Clergy Council of Northern Nevada, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and The Children’s Cabinet.

Claire McCully, born and raised near Yosemite National Park, has worked as a seasonal firefighter and as a library worker. She earned a Master’s of Fine Arts in creative writing from California State University Fresno and is currently a writer, English professor, and a parent of six children. She lives at Lake Tahoe and recently participated in Reno’s first Literary Death Match.

Briana Neben is a Carson High School graduate and received her Associate of Arts degree from Western Nevada College. After completing volunteer training for Court Appointed Special Advocates, she served on its Board of Directors and was elected president when she was 22 years old. She also volunteers for Advocates to End Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Response Advocates, and her top-five placement at Miss Nevada the past two years has helped pay for her social work degree at the University of Nevada, Reno.

Joseph Tatum is a Reno-based cellist and composer. He was commissioned by Artown to collaborate with dancer Alex Kaskie, who will appear with him, for the inaugural Artown Under the Radar performance. Tatum performs with the Reno Philharmonic, as well as with the Desert Rose Ensemble. He also maintains an active interest in teaching, including work with the Reno Philharmonic Youth Orchestra program as well as leading a studio for private cello lessons.

John Vanek is a leadership, collaboration, and anti-human trafficking consultant and speaker. He’s a member of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ National Advisory Committee on the Sex Trafficking of Children and Youth in the United States, and is the author of “The Essential Abolitionist: What you need to know about human trafficking & modern slavery.” He served 25 years with the San Jose Police Department, retiring with the rank of lieutenant, and now lives in Gardnerville.