TEDxOrangeCoast Announces Speakers for Fourth Annual Conference

NEWPORT BEACH, CA--(Marketwired - Jul 24, 2014) - TEDxOrangeCoast today announced the first six speakers for its fourth annual fall conference, to be held Sept. 19-20 at Soka University of America. Presenters include Umi Garrett, a 13-year-old piano virtuoso; A.G. Kawamura, former California secretary of agriculture; Eric Chen, Harvard freshman and technology/biology activist; Judy Estrin, author of Closing the Innovation Gap and co-founder of eight technology companies; Dan Miller, managing director of The Roda Group, a seed-stage venture capital group focused on clean technology; and Clinton Wilborn, an award-winning author and acclaimed performer.

"The high-caliber speakers we have lined up represent some of the most renowned talent in Southern California," says Mojdeh Eskandari, executive producer of TEDxOrangeCoast. "We are fortunate to have them present this year."

Each of the speakers has earned significant distinctions in his or her respective field. Garret has won multiple international music competitions. Kawamura, former secretary of agriculture in California, has served on more than a half-dozen agricultural boards. Chen holds the 2014 Intel Prize and has been profiled in dozens of national and international media for his innovative flu-fighting discovery; Estrin's entrepreneurial spirit has landed her a spot in Fortune magazine's 50 Most Powerful Women. Miller is a member of several science and technology boards and holds three patents in the areas of compression technology and wireless communications systems. Wilborn has been recognized for his talent and has received many awards including USA Book News Best Autobiography, Regents Park Artist in Residence award and the QBliss magazine Visibility Award.

This year's conference will feature Social Spaces, a selection of themed outdoor spaces and galleries that enable guests to meet and mingle with speakers, and are designed to spark innovative conversation around specific topics. Themes will include food, music, dance, art, education and more.

Tickets for this conference start at $90. To register, please visit: TEDxOrangeCoast.com.

About TEDxOrangeCoast: TEDxOrangeCoast is a non-profit, independently organized TED event devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading through annual conferences featuring fascinating doers and thinkers who present in 18 minutes or less. Its scope has broadened to include the TEDxTeenChallenge, which promote Ideas Worth Doing. TEDxOrangeCoast brings together a like-minded community of curious, highly engaged learners committed to inspiring change through positive actions. Learn more at www.TEDxOrangeCoast.com.

About TEDx, x = independently organized event: In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

About TED: TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California almost 30 years ago, TED has grown to support those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. The two annual TED Conferences invite the world's leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes on a diverse mix of topics. Many of these talks are then made available, free, at TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Nandan Nilekani, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Isabel Allende and former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The TED2014 Conference will take place in Vancouver, British Columbia, along with the TEDActive simulcast in neighboring Whistler. TEDGlobal 2014 will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

TED's media initiatives include TED.com, where new TED Talks are posted daily; the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as translations from volunteers worldwide; the educational initiative TED-Ed; and TEDBooks, short e-books on powerful ideas. TED has established the annual TED Prize, where exceptional individuals with a wish to change the world get help translating their wishes into action; TEDx, which supports individuals or groups in hosting local, self-organized TED-style events around the world; and the TED Fellows program, helping world-changing innovators from around the globe to amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities. Follow TED on Twitter or on Facebook.