Speakers & Videos 2018
Videos of our speakers' TEDxZuriberg 2018 Talks
(July 3rd, 2018)
Emma runs the Philanthropy Service at Barclays Bank and has over 25 years experience in the field of philanthropy.
The Service aims to engage, educate and support high net worth clients in their philanthropic journey.
Emma had previously worked at Goldman Sachs where she was Executive Director of the Charitable Services Group in EMEA and Asia. Before that, she was Fundraiser and Marketing Manager for a major London charity. Emma is on the board of one charity in the UK and a charity in the USA.
Danielle Town is a New York Times bestselling author, and Investing Practice expert who started out afraid of numbers and stock markets, until she discovered that, with a little knowledge and practice, her weaknesses were actually strengths. She is now helping people overcome their reluctance to invest, and transform their lives towards financial freedom through her newsletter, courses, podcast, and book. She wrote her book, Invested: How Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger Taught Me to Master My Mind, My Emotions, and My Money (with a Little Help from My Dad), with her investor father, Phil Town. They banter about value investing and life on their podcast, InvestED.
Claudia Bluemhuber is CEO and Managing Partner of Silver Reel Partners. Silver Reel is based in Zurich and one of the leading international film financing and production companies. Since 2009 it has financed and produced a wide range of independently produced motion pictures. Over the years, Claudia has worked with a group of award-winning producers, directors and actors around the globe. The latest Silver Reel projects include Churchill, The Wife and Loving Vincent, which received an Oscar nomination ('18). She has over 20 years of experience in the media industry and 15 years in private equity and asset management. Silver Reel focusses on investment opportunities in the entertainment industry through both family office and institutional investors.
Nick Bubb heads up Global Development at Fauna & Flora International (FFI), the world's oldest international wildlife conservation charity. FFI supports a great number of conservation programs in 47 countries, which integrate scientific expertise and local community engagement.
Nick's varied background includes significant time spent as an: engineer, professional ocean racer, sports sponsorship expert and wealth manager. After an expedition to Antarctica in 2012 and seeing the first-hand effects of climate change, Nick decided to leave the world of financial management behind and combine all his skills, experiences & networks, and dedicate himself to environmental causes.
Dr Claire Melamed is the CEO of the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, heading up a global team based in five countries. She was previously Managing Director of the Overseas Development Institute, and in 2014, she worked in the office of the UN Secretary General, writing the report of the Independent Expert Advisory Group on the Data Revolution, "A World That Counts". Claire is based in London, has worked for a number of international NGOs and taught at the University of London and the Open University. Dr. Melamed has a PhD from the University of London, and can be found on Twitter at @clairemelamed.
Willemijn Kappers is living in the Netherlands. After finishing her Masters degree, she has worked and still does, in finance, at the finance district in Amsterdam. Ten years ago, Willemijn started developing as a photographer, autodidactically. Only portraits, only people. That is where Willemijn's heart is, with the people. She created several series of photos, e.g. Liberty and There is no Difference. All are very well received with the public.
Laura Jansen is an award winning Dutch/American singer songwriter. Her own music has taken her around the world and she has collaborated with artists such as Armin van Buuren, Keane, Snowpatrol and many others. Her life took a remarkable turn when she was confronted with the current migration crisis in her hometown of Amsterdam. Compelled to act she became part of a team of concerned citizens caring for arriving refugees at the train station at night. Upon visiting the island of Lesvos, Greece at the height of the crisis, she co-founded Movement on the Ground, an NGO that has since been active full time in the refugee camps providing humanitarian support of all kinds. Laura lived on Lesvos for 2.5 years, creating programs and implementing projects to support the needs of the refugee population. She now combines music and advocacy by using her public platform to engage her audience in debate and action.
Eitan Chitayat is the founder and Creative Director of the global Natie Branding Agency in Tel Aviv. He is an award-winning brand-builder who's lived in Hong-Kong, London, New York and Boston and has been delivering advertising campaigns and brand identities for 20 years for the likes of Google, Apple, YouTube, Target, ELMA Art Complex Luxury Hotel and Facebook. He's a husband, a father, a consultant and has been a jury member for one of advertising finest competitions, The One Show. He thrives on making stuff from writing a script for an astronaut in space to recently creating the well-received viral video, "I'm that Jew". "Work hard and be nice" are his philosophical words he lives by.


Gary Tynan is the Founding Director of Studio 304, an architect studio based in London. The studio has quickly gained a reputation for innovative design and has featured in some of the most influential global design websites and publications. In 2017 the Sunken Bath Project was named 'London's Best House Extension' at the New London Don't Move Improve Awards. He received his degree in architecture from Edinburgh College of Art, trained at high-profile architecture studios in New York, Barcelona and London and is registered with the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Gary is passionate about residential design and the challenges architects face to provide higher quality living spaces in our cities.


Steve G. Papermaster is a world renowned technology entrepreneur, public policy expert, global speaker and author. He is the founder, chairman and CEO of Nano Vision, a company dedicated to dramatically accelerating the development of cures for a vast range of cancers, infectious diseases and health conditions. Steve was appointed, and served two terms, as a senior advisor to former US President George W Bush on domestic and global strategy for innovation, technology, healthcare and science. As a presidential advisor, he helped lead the National Nanotechnology Initiative, the Human Genome Project and the White House Fellow, one of America's most prestigious programs for leadership and public service.
Straddling the precarious position between science and education, Thomas Egli has aimed to share his passion for marine biology with nerds and city- dwellers alike. With a childhood in Calgary and roots in Switzerland, he somehow managed to nurture a love affair with the ocean. Counting sea cucumbers in Canada, tagging sea turtles in Costa Rica, chasing dolphins in New Zealand, and canning tuna in the Maldives are all on his resume. Thomas is a veteran trip leader for National Geographic Expeditions and has led adventure tours to five continents. After a career spanning 15 years as an environmental interpreter, commercial scuba diver, dancer, and educator, Thomas aimed for new challenges at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH). Armed with a master's degree in Environmental Science, he now develops and manages small-scale fishery improvement projects in developing countries with Blueyou Consulting in Zürich.
Roland Siegwart is professor for autonomous mobile robots at ETH Zurich, founding co-director of the Wyss Zurich and member of the board of directors of multiple high tech companies. He studied mechanical engineering at ETH, spent ten years as professor at EPFL Lausanne, held visiting positions at Stanford University and NASA Ames and was vice president of ETH Zurich. He is co-founder of half a dozen spin-off companies and a strong promoter of innovation and entrepreneurship in Switzerland.
Nikos Kariotoglou is CEO and co-founder of Seervision AG. Seervision is an ETH Spin-off company based in Zurich focusing on automation technologies that turn robotic camera systems into professional camera operators. The company's vision is to enable high-end video production in all live event recordings by providing automated camera service robots directed by human multi-camera operators. Nikos received his Ph.D. in Stochastic Optimization-Based Control from the Automatic Control Laboratory of ETH Zurich in 2015 where since 2011 he has supervised and been involved in more than 10 research projects on real-time camera and lens control.
Tom Hofmann is a cyber-security enthusiast with a passion for innovation. For the last 18 years, he implemented projects from the Finnish polar circle to the megacity of Tokyo. His focus lies on why (cyber) security doesn't become more efficient and effective as technology progresses, and on how human-centered innovation can be leveraged to achieve a joint optimization of complex social and technical systems. He holds an Executive Diploma in IT Business Management from the renowned Universität of St. Gallen, Switzerland. Besides his passion for technology and innovation, he is also engaged in various inclusion and diversity projects, like the Ladies in Mechanical and Electrical Studies (LIMES) Researchers initiative at ETH Zürich.
Mohsin Khan was born and raised in the Dharawi Slum in Mumbai. After secondary school he became interested in social issues and has done extensive research on male prostitution both in Mumbai and around the world. He has recently completed his Bachelor's Degree in Business and Commerce at the Rizvi College of Mumbai University.
Bianca Pitt is a full time mother of two very lively children. She is also an advisor to environmental charities, including ClientEarth, The Environmental Funders Network and The Sustainable Angle. She previously worked in the printing and packaging industry (Mayr-Melnhof), publishing (Macmillan) and corporate finance (van Tulleken, now Houlihan Lokey). Her quiet campaigning for the environment, including on topics such as climate change, clean air and plastics has lead to the realisation that with activism comes great happiness and hope for the future.
Performers
Videos of our fabulous performances
Ensemble
Irina Pak, Korean Russian-born, violinist, member of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zürich and international soloist, has a passionate, self-confident mastery of her instrument combined with an electrifying stage presence. Diversity & innovation looms large in her artistic self-conception and she is open-minded about unconventional concepts.

Dorothy Yeung, British-born pianist, is a world-wide music Producer for Universal Music, medici.tv, Verbier Festival and for artists such as Cecilia Bartoli and Anne-Sophie Mutter. Dorothy's expertise lies above all in creating innovative, live events in unusual locations. They are co-founders of More than Classic launched in 2018. They are inspired and driven to bring people together for new memorable experiences.
Singer-Songwriter
Meng Tian is a chinese-born, swiss-based musical artist. While the experience of her immigration to Switzerland inspired her debut album in 2008, her latest double album written in both English and Chinese tells the story of a well-travelled performer and showcases a more mature approach to songwriting. With a BA in Political Science she has worked extensively in the fields of journalism and communication for news outlets such as CNBC Europe, the swiss public sector and a NGO working towards sustainable agriculture in Africa. Meng Tian is interested in stories, telling them through the universal language of music and ultimately reaching people's hearts.
Singer-Songwriter
Singer-songwriter Gregg Robins has received critical acclaim for his music, which reflects his striving to find meaning and joy in difficult and painful experiences, whether in his own life or in our society. An Oxford-educated native New Yorker, he has spent the last three decades in Europe and Russia, as a leading wealth advisor and professor of business. His passion for lifelong learning, and embracing and overcoming challenges, led him to develop the "live messy lives" philosophy, which he shares with young people worldwide.
Yoga teacher
Nora is a yoga teacher who lives in Zürich, Switzerland. She found her passion with yoga. Next to regular classes, Nora organizes special events, she teaches yoga instructors, and together with her Husband, a Fitness instructor, she developed a new class which is a combination of yoga and high intensity exercises.
What now?
What next!
At TEDxZuriberg we bring together brilliant speakers from across disciplines with a curious and fascinating audience. It will be a day of ideas worth sharing and conversations worth having.

Stay tuned for our next event...

This is an invitation only event. If you feel that you can make a great contribution, please drop us a line at info@tedxzuriberg.com.

Meet our team
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Organizer
Co-organizer
Lory Spier
Head of Partnerships/Sponsorship
Valerie Jurgens
Head of Speakers
Head of Communications
Head of Operations
Speaker Coaching
Speaker Coaching
Volunteers 2018

Andrea Grajeda
Celine Dalloz
Cheri Lopez
David Jud
Helena Rosa
Jackson Daines
Kyra Meyer
Mariana Villasboas
Marie-Francine Lagadec
Noa Tali Levi
Orly Hindi
Sydney Armbruester
Valeria Gonzalez