TEDxCapeMay Speaker Guidelines
TEDx events focus on the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. In keeping with the TED spirit, TEDxCapeMay seeks outstanding presenters from various disciplines who have truly original “ideas worth spreading,” and who can inspire an audience to explore, learn, and engage with those ideas. The TEDxCapeMay organizer is responsible for selecting speakers in keeping with the TED spirit and the TEDx guidelines as follows:
Selection: TEDx Organizers are responsible for procuring and handling their own speakers. TED staff do not help identify or secure speakers.
Payment: TEDx events may never pay speakers.
Sponsorship: Speakers may not sponsor any portion of your TEDx event, in-kind or otherwise. Sponsors of your event cannot be speakers.
Duration: No talk can exceed 18 minutes in length.
Multi-topical and Multidisciplinary: TEDx events must feature a diversity of speakers from across several disciplines that address various topics. These topics should not fall under a single subject.
Presentations: The content of every talk must comply with copyright law. Speakers must inform you beforehand of any third-party material that will be used in their presentations and seek written permission for copyrighted materials when applicable. TED cannot assist with this process or act as a consultant on individual cases.
Content: Speakers must tell a story that offers original insights or argue for an original idea. They may not use the TED stage to sell products or promote themselves or businesses. Every talk's content must be original and give credit where appropriate. Speakers cannot plagiarize or impersonate other persons, living or dead. Speakers must be able to confirm the claims presented in every talk -- TED and TEDx are exceptional stages for showcasing advances in science, and we can only stay that way if the claims presented in our talks can stand up to scrutiny from the scientific community. TED is also not the right platform for talks with an inflammatory political or religious agenda or polarizing “us vs. them” language. If Talks fail to meet the standards above, TED reserves the right to insist on their removal.
Speaker release: Everyone who appears onstage must sign the TEDxCapeMay release form.
TEDxTalks videos: TEDx event teams must upload videos of every talk from their event to the TEDxTalks YouTube channel (and only the TEDxTalks YouTube channel) unless the content violates the above rules. If an organizer chooses to withhold a talk, they are fully responsible for informing TEDx staff and then for communicating the reasoning of their actions to the speakers.
Applications are considered based on the curation team’s planned speaker profile using the following criteria:
Innovative idea worth spreading - more than an inspirational personal story
Speaker credentials
Distinctive discipline / category from the talks already accepted for this year
Timely topic
Relation to the event theme
Potential popularity
Diversity of perspective
Scientifically credible (if applicable)
NOTE: TED requires us to curate talks across various disciplines and categories. While you may have an “idea worth spreading,” we may not be able to include your talk, either because it does not fit our program profile or because we already have a speaker in the same category.