TEDx Margalla: Ingenious ideas, constructive minds brought to the fore

ISLAMABAD: The first ‘TEDx Margalla’ event was held at Kuch Khaas in Islamabad on Monday. “TEDx” events are local, independent off-shoots of the internationally renowned TED platform, which showcases “ideas worth spreading”.

TEDx Margalla, in particular, was organised by a group of young students from universities in the Rawalpindi-Islamabad area, including Bahria University, National University of Science and Technology, FAST National University and Comsats Institute of Information Technology. The eleven people who spoke at the event included well-known names like Ali Moeen Nawazish, famous for obtaining a record number of As in the A’level exams, journalist and film-maker Beena Sarwar and Dr Amjad Saqib, pioneer of interest-free microfinance in Pakistan.

MNA Khurram Dastgir Khan, who was also present on the occasion, spoke about the ‘secession of politics from the intelligentsia’ and said that there existed a need to build links between the realm of ideas and that of politics. American philanthropist Todd Shea, another speaker, was particularly popular with the crowd, in part, due to his acoustic rendition of “Dil Dil Pakistan”.

As far as innovation was concerned, however, some of the best ideas were presented by people who have so far received less public attention. Sarah Adeel’s vision for orphanages in South Asia was particularly moving. Her aesthetically pleasing presentation managed to showcase her background as an architect at the Rhode Island School of Design. Waqar Qureshi, the whiz-kid from Lahore with a genuine fascination with technology, spoke about how he had developed his own models for motion capture technology and a non-touch interface system from his bedroom. Nofal Khan, a young Karachiite, introduced his ideas for educational reform via “Pappu”, the nine-year-old child growing up in a tough urban environment.

Later, Zahara Naqvi took the audience through 75 years of history in a three-minute presentation of pen and ink drawings. The effort highlighted the need to document and preserve our architectural heritage. The last speaker Mamoon Tariq offered a simple solution to ending the digital divide through the use of mobile phones and “hypermostlinks”.

The presentations were interspersed with musical performances as well as video clips, including a short film on Master Ayub, the unsung hero of Hill Road who has been teaching slum children of the locality,in the park for over 26 years. Although the speakers did not all adhere to the 18-minute limit on their presentations, on the whole it was a seamlessly coordinated event.

TEDx Margalla curator, Saad Hamid, expressed deep appreciation for the Kuch Khaas team. Event Coordinator Sufwan Sarwar was similarly understated, saying, “By the grace of Allah it went fine - better than our expectations. The speakers and attendees were really crucial in making the event a successful one.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 7^th, 2010.