TEDxPortsmouth is pressing pause on its 2020 event, originally planned for September 25 at The Music Hall in Portsmouth due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Last year, as a true community-driven event, TEDxPortsmouth 2019 brought together 900 audience members, more than 200 volunteers, and sponsors from a variety of businesses and organizations around the Seacoast.
Based on that success, we just couldn’t see doing it any other way. “What makes TEDxPortsmouth such an amazing and important event is the big show, and how it brings our community out together in one space for a meaningful day,” says co-organizer Anna Goldsmith.
TEDxPortsmouth is produced by a team of volunteers and supported entirely by the sponsorship of local businesses. Although the event is not until September, most of the work happens (and financial support is needed) during the spring, in order to secure vendor services, and independent contractors for day-of services. Given the worldwide pandemic, the TEDxPortsmouth team feels it is not appropriate to ask for sponsorship from local businesses that have the ability to support their community in a more direct way such as donating to food banks and essential workers.
Says Goldsmith: “This was an incredibly hard decision to make, but after consulting with our team leaders, and seeking advice from TEDx organizers from around the world, this feels like the most responsible option.”
You might say this just means that TEDxPortsmouth 2021 will be double-the-magic. In the meantime…
We’re Pausing, But We Are NOT Going Dark
While our 2020 event is cancelled, our TEDxPortsmouth online community will remain very much alive. In the coming weeks, you’ll still be hearing from us via our newsletter, and we invite you to visit our social pages to see what our amazing sponsors, team members and partners are doing to inspire positive change on our seacoast during this difficult time.
If You Can’t Stop Thinking About COVID-19, But Need To Think About It In a Different Way …
… might we suggest the TED-curated talks recorded in the last several weeks from leading global health experts and innovators about how this pandemic is affecting us, and how we can get through it with our sanity and safety intact? TED is organizing TED Connects chats done remotely with interesting thought-leaders and pandemic frontliners: Bill Gates, Fareed Zakaria, Rabbi Lord Johnathan Sacks, and more. Can’t bear to watch another press conference? Check this out instead.