The Hack: Give a free seat to 20 startups, support your local entrepreneurs.
Syed Irteza Ubaid is the Organizer of TEDxLahore, the TEDx Ambassador for Pakistan and a TEDx Translator. That's a lot of TED. He has been involved with at least 18 TEDx events and has one of those personalities that we see so often when we talk to Organizers, passionate, curious, interested and helpful.
TEDxLahore is the oldest TEDx in the city of 15 million people. If you search for Lahore on the TEDx event page, you'll see there have been over 90 events in the city. Lahore is a major cultural and educational hub, and the citizens are hungry for intellectual events that challenge and stimulate them.
In 2017 he was nominated by his peers to be a TEDx Ambassador and the liaison for the region with TED in NYC. The role of ambassador includes helping TEDx leadership understand the cultural considerations of the region. There are 20 TEDx Ambassadors.
He is deeply involved in TED and TEDx and has helped form 20 TED-Ed clubs throughout the city as a way of nurturing the community.
He shared a great trick, which is to have journalists on your curation team. They have ways of finding the most interesting people and stories, especially in a city of 15 million people.
We support the community and the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Pakistan."Syed Irteza Ubaid, TEDxLahore, Organizer
The Lightning Round
Tell us a bit about your background and your TEDx origin story.
He's been involved with TEDx since 2013 when his first event was for 100 people. They went up to 1,000, but since scaled back to improve the user experience.
How many TEDx events have you worked with or produced?
He's worked with over 18 shows, and there are 50 unique TEDx events within a 7-hour drive from Lahore. As the Ambassador, he tries to get to as many as possible. His favorite part of the job: spreading skills in the region.
What makes your TEDx unique?
TEDxLahore is the oldest TEDx in the City, and they work with the local community to find amazing speakers that reflect the cultural and educational aspects of the city of 15 million people.
What’s your Superpower?
Curating for sure.
What was the biggest surprise while working on your event?
Funny, when I asked him this question, he said, everyday is a new surprise. Love it.
Every event has its challenges, what was the biggest dragon you had to overcome?
Coaching local speakers and bringing them up to the TEDx standards.
What’s one piece of advice you have for veteran organizers? For first-timers?
Focus on the ideas, not the production, network, food or user experience.
Looking forward to your next event, what excites you the most?
Meeting a new group of people, new ideas and user experiences that focus on cultural heritage.
What’s a TEDx event that you’d like to attend?
TEDxBeaconStreet. (Hear that John)
The show is called Hacking the Red Circle, so what's your best hack?
Give a free seat to 20 startups, Support your local entrepreneurs.
Featured Episodes
TEDxUCLouvain – Creating an Experience in spite of COVID
Finding ways to be creative and stay connected to your TEDx Community during these challenging times of sequestering and dealing with a global pandemic can test even the most creative Organizers.
Lara Stein – Founder of TEDx
On the first day of TED2019 in Vancouver, Randy Bretz, TEDxLincoln, Emeritus, and I were honored to interview the founder of TEDx, Lara Stein.