TEDxDurham Founder Herb Kim In Conversation With The Culture County

Durham City will proudly host TEDxDurham at the Gala Durham on 2 November. After 12 years, the event returns to the UK from Durham, North Carolina, and is part of the global TEDx programme, featuring independently organised events inspired by TED Talks.

2025 TEDxDurham will present 10 talks from thought leaders including Sir Vince Cable and Jill Scott, as the event helps to showcase ideas worth spreading to spark curiosity, challenge perspectives, and inspire the regional community.

With the event rapidly approaching, the Culture County sat down with TEDxDurham founder Herb Kim to discuss the event's return to Durham, how the format has evolved over the last 12 years and the impact TEDxDurham will have on the region’s innovation and creativity.

Q. What inspired you to bring TEDxDurham back to its original UK home after its journey abroad?

A. I’ve been a huge fan of the TED Conference since I first attended it in Monterey, California in 2006. I’ve also been a big supporter of North East England since relocating here in 2002. And given Durham’s global reputation as a centre for learning and innovation I have long thought it would be great to have a world-class TEDx event here too. So, when I learned from TED that there was an opportunity to repatriate the TEDxDurham event back to Northern England I quickly alerted Durham County Council about the opportunity and seized the opportunity!

Q. How has the TEDxDurham vision and format evolved since its first event in 2013?

A. I think the main way the TEDx vision has changed over the past 12 years is an increasing emphasis on your locality and region. In the early days nearly all TEDx organisers were trying to go for the biggest names they could get from anywhere in the world. We have discovered that finding and featuring local talent is a great way to use the TED brand and global platform by unearthing local talent and helping them spread their ideas to a far larger community. This has been super-rewarding for us as organisers too!

Q. Can you tell us more about this year’s speaker lineup, what topics will be explored, and is there an overarching theme that ties the day together?

A. We’re extremely excited to have convinced the former Lib Dem leader Sir Vince Cable to do his first-ever TEDx talk in Durham. He won’t be talking politics though as his first love was in economics. He comes to Durham to discuss the superpower clash as China continues to rise as the USA struggles to maintain its global dominance. As well as Sir Vince , we have Jill Scott, as many will know ,  Jill hails originally from North East England and continues her transition from a sterling professional and international football career.  We’re honoured to be hosting her first-ever TEDx talk. We’ve asked Jill to share her incredible story from the North East to the greatest temples in world football and what were some of the hidden stories and lessons along the way.

We will be also hosting Duncan Wardle, who has enjoyed an incredible 30 year career at the Walt Disney Company, starting as a barman in Epcot and working his way up to being their Head of Innovation and Creativity. He travels to Durham from Orlando to address the increasing threat of AI to our livelihoods and how he is seeing ambitious professionals respond to the challenge of AI. Plus Professior Carlos Frenk, Jen Bartram and Martha Deiros Collado alongside four more speakers, the full list of speakers can be found here.

Q. How do you balance global relevance with local resonance when selecting speakers for a regional TEDx event?

A. It’s an art. We do emphasise speakers with a meaningful connection to the region whether they be working here, living here, educated here or born here. From there we look for talks that we feel that anyone from Durham to Dallas to Dubai will find equally relevant. And of course, we also will invite speakers not connected to the North East that we feel bring an amazing presentation or story that will really resonate with our regional audience too.

Q. This year’s speakers span global economics, neuroscience, AI, and childhood psychology - what was the guiding principle behind this mix?

A. The fundamental guiding principle to curating TEDx speakers is are they interesting and are credible. A speaker must contribute something distinct to the event and in addition do they have the time and interest in building and preparing for a TEDx talk.

Q. What kind of impact do you hope TEDxDurham will have on the North East’s innovation and creative communities?

A. The TED brand is synonymous with innovation and creativity around the world. Through TED I have met everyone from the founders of Google, to the creator of The Simpsons and actress Cameron Diaz. I think what TED brings to innovators and creatives is an experience that re-sparks our brain’s natural curiosity. That curiosity is the essential fire that leads to innovation and creativity. What we have shown through TEDx is that this creative fire is just as relevant in Durham as it is in San Francisco or New York City.

TEDxDurham will return to Gala Durham on 2 November, and will feature 10 talks designed to spark curiosity, challenge perspectives, and inspire the regional community. Discover more information on the event.