Triumph Over Tragedy: A Moment with Mallory Weggemann

On January 21^st, 2008, Mallory Weggemann went to the doctor’s office for an epidural injection. She never walked out.

What was supposed to be a routine procedure to treat chronic back pain proved to turn Mallory’s life on its head, completely paralyzing her from the waist down. Take a second to imagine that, having your entire life – of which for Mallory was soon to be that of a collegiate Division 1 swimmer– being stripped away in a matter of seconds. How would you react? What would be running through your mind? Would you lie down and give up, or fight back to regain control of your life?

When asked to reflect on that fateful day, Mallory mentioned that no one really knew what had truly transpired until a few hours after the procedure. As she said, “Normally, these types of epidurals for back pain cause you to lose all sensation and movement from the point of injection down. After those first few hours passed though, I still did not have any feeling back. That’s when it really started to hit me.”

She delved deeper into her real time emotions in recognizing “the fear of uncertainty, the ‘how could this happen,’ the ‘why me’s,’ the ‘what if’s,’ pretty much every emotion you could think of went through my head. It felt like everything was going through me like a freight train, while I was just trying to catch up to what was actually going on.”

In just a moment’s notice, Mallory’s independence was taken from her completely. She needed assistance with simple functions of washing her face, eating a meal, and getting dressed. But in relation to ‘lying down and giving up, or fighting back to regain control,’ she chose the latter, refusing to accept the situation at hand as her ultimate fate. She stresses that her subsequent positive trajectory was not easily accomplished. “It wasn’t as if I woke up one day, flipped the switch and moved on with life. It was a slow progression of things. I think it still is and probably will be for a while. After six years this is still fairly new.”

If there was a particular ‘tipping point’ in the initial recovery period, it probably came only a week after the procedure when a wave of frustration hit Mallory in relation to her physical therapy. At that point, she was at the complete mercy of her therapists and the tools they would use. “I would have belts around my waist with my therapists arms underneath mine to lift me out of my chair and onto the therapy bench so we could proceed with the sessions…I got so frustrated one day that I just said ‘don’t touch me.’ I said, ‘if I’m going to fall you can grab me, but I’m doing this on my own today.”

It ended up taking Mallory the entire hour of that session to simply transfer to the bench that was perfectly level with her wheelchair, only an inch apart. As she put it, “the fact that I was able to do that was a big step for me. It helped me say to myself, ‘this is what it is, it sucks, but I can’t just lay here and let it happen to me. I can fight against this. I can find a way to have my own independence.’ ”

It wasn’t long until Mallory found herself back in the water, re-pursuing her life’s passion; swimming. She reflected on what it was like to get back into the pool for the first time in saying, “above all, it was just so weird. Before my paralysis my swimming style was all legs, I had no upper body strength at all. So when I got back into the water and didn’t have that leg power, it was interesting to say the least. It was fun though because it was just a new challenge for me. It wasn’t me in my wheel chair. It was just me in the water…in those first 50 meters I completely forgot I was paralyzed.”

Mallory’s hard work and commitment to her love of swimming led her to winning multiple gold medals and breaking many world records at the 2009 and 2010 IPC World Swimming Championships. That ultimately enabled her to be on one of our world’s grandest stages as an athlete in the 2012 Summer Paralympic Games held in London.

Beyond the profound honor and humbling experience of representing her country in such a marquee world event, Mallory mentioned the experience of being in the Olympic Village as something that will always stay with her. “I remember going into the dining hall the first few days and seeing everyone in their team clothing sitting with their fellow teammates, truly honed in on the competition at hand. But as the competition evolved and came closer to the end, everyone just mixed. It was amazing to see that and watch everyone come together, no matter what was going on in the world, or the language barriers before us. None of that mattered.

Her entire Olympic experience wasn’t all smooth sailing though. As a Paralympic swimmer, Mallory, and all the other athletes are ranked into classifications from S1-S10 (S10 being of the highest ability in the field). Throughout her IPC swimming career, Mallory had been classified as an S7 swimmer enabling her to be ranked in the top two of each event she would be racing in. With that in mind, Mallory had set the goal for to capture 9 gold medals, one for each event she would be participating in at the Paralympic games. However, just days before the games’ commencement, Mallory learned that the IPC had reclassified her from S7 to S8, making her the only athlete in her classification who was without function in her legs.

“That was really tough, but the support I received from everyone around the world was absolutely incredible,” she said, “I remember before I went into the ready room for my 50 Meter Freestyle race I had somebody come up to me and say ‘go shock the world.’ From then on, I was in my own little world.”

At that stage in the game, as Mallory alluded to, everybody competing is dreaming of a medal. What it really comes down to in her mind is who wants it more. Mallory proceeded to go into detail about that historic race:

“Even though swimming is an individual sport I truly felt like I had a world of people behind me. Halfway through the race, at the 25m mark I was in 6^th place, looking at the toes of the girl next to me, who was the current world record holder. After that I just buried my head, didn’t take a breath, and literally just thought of how much I had sacrificed for this one moment. I don’t know what I did, I just dug deep.”

Mallory ended up breaking the world record in that 50 Meter Freestyle race, something that only feeds her fire more towards what she wants to accomplish in the next games.

With all the struggle and hardship that has come with the past six years of Mallory’s life, many of us may expect that if she could go back to that fateful January 21^st afternoon, she may wish for a different result. The reality is the complete opposite. If given the chance, Mallory would not change the fact that a routine procedure caused her to lose function in her legs for life, because the aftermath of what she has done since then is now what defines her.

She recalled being asked that question for the first time on The Today Show, just a year and a half after the incident; even she was shocked by her own answer at the time. In retrospect though, it was an answer that remains true to her. Mallory continued to address this on a broader scale in saying, “the adversities in life, the ups and the downs are what make us who we truly are. You can’t go through life without any adversity, and if people think that is possible than they are in a bit of denial…the journey I have had since January 21^st, 2008 has forced me to reflect on my own life in ways that I probably never would have. I have learned in a very quick time, at a very young age how important the little things in life are.

After listening to Mallory’s story, it became more and more clear why she is a perfect fit for TEDxUNPlaza’s BRAVE: United in Action. Her story of courage and struggle, only to be triumphed by overwhelming success has inspired many around the world, reminding us to appreciate the subtle pleasures in life; because at a moment’s noticed, drastic change may rear its ugly head.

It should not come as a surprise that Mallory’s concept towards bravery is highly introspective, one that likely stems from the extenuating circumstances she has been dealt. In her mind, “Bravery is pushing past fear, and not allowing fear to consume you, or letting it stop us from doing things. We are all brave in our own right. Everyday we get up and face our own personal challenges, our dreams, and the problems in our society. So many people look at the word ‘bravery’ and get intimidated by it. If you reflect though, you will realize that we are all brave through our own stories, through our own lives.”

Currently, Mallory is working to conquer a strangely unfamiliar terrain, that of being able to regain the feeling of her feet resting beneath her again. While she has been told that she will never regain feeling or function in her legs, Mallory still wants to re-establish that memory of being able to walk; one that she admits is slipping away little by little as time presses on. Through a rigorous training regiment to boost up her functional core and upper-body strength, combined with custom fitted leg braces though, she hopes to be able to once again place one foot in front of the other, moving forward.

Learn more about her ‘Against all Odds, The Journey of New Mobility’ campaign through the video below and become involved through her Indiegogo page here.

A New Somalia

The political transition is a significant turning point in Somalia’s history and presents an opportunity for real positive change in the war-torn nation. Produced by the guerilla filmmaking collective What Took You So Long?, this video presents the voices of hope of Somalis living and working in Mogadishu, from the Deputy Prime Minister and Speaker of Parliament, to artists, students and IDPs.

TEDxUNPlaza: Brave, United in Action

It has been close to 30 years since TED’s vision of Ideas Worth Spreading hit the ground running during its inaugural California conference. Since then, the platform has exploded worldwide; connecting inspiring speakers and true change-makers to those eager to be the change they wish to see in the world. Given the overwhelming growth of the TED universe, the organization formed a new platform, TEDx, to enable those inspired by the TED mission to organize their own ‘TED-like’ experiences through independently organized events. Since its 2009 commencement, TEDx has been executed far and wide, from Somalia, to Amsterdam and seemingly everywhere in between.

This year though, a new team of TEDx organizers, volunteers, and trend-setting global citizens will be conquering a new terrain with the unprecedented TEDxUNPlaza BRAVE: United in Action event; being held at the United Nations headquarters in the heart of New York City. Throughout the course of the day’s proceedings, speakers, guests and delegates will gather in the name of TED’s undertaking of Ideas Worth Spreading in the pursuit of converting these game-changing ideas into tangible real world action.

Participants and speakers at this one-day event include prominent luminaries and industry leaders such as Climate Change Expert Robert Swan, OBE, Albert Einstein Technology Medal winner Naveen Jain, Academy Award winning director Brenda Chapman, rising teen science whiz kid Jack Andraka, gold medal winning Paralympic swimmer Mallory Weggemann, and Lebo M, a key producer of the award-winningLion King soundtrack. The event will be moderated by Journalist Joris Luyendijk and TEDxUNPlaza Licensee Costa Michailidis, enabling like minded individuals to gather in the discussion of four key themes: Women’s Empowerment, Change Everything, Being Human, and Ideas to Action, under this year’s TEDxUNPlaza “BRAVE: United in Action” platform.

(Click here for the most recent speaker list: http://tedxunplaza.com/speakers/)

“We believe BRAVERY allows individuals to enact enormous change in the world, and our speakers and attendees have used courage to disrupt industries, challenge norms, animate movies, combat complexity in policy, and design new structures for a better world,” said Eiso Vaandrager and Kunal Sood, the Curators of TEDxUNPlaza. “We are proud to deliver their stories of fearlessness, perseverance, courage, and change on September 16, at a location no less inspiring than the United Nations Headquarters.”

 While the event will be invitation-only, the TEDxUNPlaza team has set in motion a variety of platforms and mediums to enable those not in attendance to be immersed into what will be an incredible experience. Through live-streaming during the event, and a Global Citizens Online Gathering prior to, and following TEDxUNPlaza, people will be encouraged to engage with the subject matter at hand with the goal in mind of converting these groundbreaking ideas into action. Prepare for impact.

Kalu Yala: A Sustainable Jungle Settlement for Entrepreneurs and Tropical Cowboys

Deep within the jungles of Panama, an hour outside of the buzzing city life of Panama City, a new, different kind of buzz is being generated through the sustainable settlement of Kalu Yala. Self-described as “a sustainable jungle settlement for entrepreneurs and tropical cowboys,” Kalu Yala is a new values-based community working to grow into a thriving town.

For the founders, the key to Kalu Yala is fostering a deep understanding of the unique environmental, cultural, and social elements particular to the mountainous tropical valley in Panama where the town will grow, and building a community of people who want to invest their ideas and passion into sustainable solutions that meet the unique needs of the region.

Over the next several years, Kalu Yala hopes to become a model for other tropical cities to flourish in the 21st century, which would be an important step toward reversing the long-standing trend that has seen capital and innovation concentrated in temperate zones, while tropical regions remain impoverished. We spoke with Jimmy Stice, Founder / CEO about how Kalu Yala came to be, and what we can expect as the community continues to evolve.

How did your path lead you to where you are now?

I grew up in a real estate family. My father was a Senior Vice President of a renowned real estate firm and eventually founded his own private equity firm in the early ‘90s. Between the way I was raised and his background in real estate I translated that into my career. Real estate represents 35% of the United States’ assets and often 40% of someone’s income is spent on their homes. The build environment is really the infrastructure of civilization that connects (or disconnects) us physically and has a huge impact on us. I meshed what my father taught me about business and what he taught me about what I believed in together to form this idealistic real estate development community focused on building value-based communities for people.

Were there any specific moments leading to Kalu Yala coming into fruition?

There were a few moments along the way.  The first was my upbringing with my family. Around that time Sim City was big and it dawned on me that this isn’t just a video game, that there are people in the business of building the world. I thought how cool it would be to build a world that’s better than the one I felt I was being ripped off in, in the suburbs of Atlanta.

From there, when I was 18, I went to a place called Seaside, Florida, which is the birthplace of new-urbanism. New-urbanism really is simply traditional neighborhood development. It’s actually not anything ‘new’ except for the fact that they didn’t practice it for about 30 years. Urbanism was in the dark ages a bit when Seaside came along. What I saw there was that when we create density within communities, we suddenly create a much more enriching environment because we’re seeing people on our streets. It’s more fun, it’s more engaging, and this is the way places are supposed to be built. At that point in time I was still in a slightly selfish teenage mindset of ‘I want to build an ideal environment for me because I don’t like this one that has been handed to me.’

After that I went to Costa Rica and saw the exportation of the US model of suburbia being applied to affordable and social housing. What I witnessed was people becoming segregated into monocultures of their own demographic where they don’t even have the chance to interact with other narratives of where they can go in the world. They were isolated in this dated housing with people of the same income and education as them. It clicked to me that the way we build our world truly affects the potential for who we all are as individuals, and therefore the potential of our society. That’s when it really became a social undertaking for me.

You have a vision of building an ethos-first community. The ‘community before the community.’What core values are you intending to hone in on during the building process? Why do you believe this to be so important as you continue to move forward?

The build environment is essentially an exoskeleton of our culture, what we believe in and what we value. Therefore, to build a place that has no values driving it is constructing a place in a vacuum. You end up with something trying to be all things to all people, which therefore the result is being nothing to anyone.

We really are in an emergent state where the interns are defining the values in a large degree. I am not sure if there are new values emerging so much as how we are gaining insight into the application of those values in the real world and what’s realistic there. For us those values tend to be: believing in stewardship, self-reliance, collaboration, transparency and a responsibility to the surrounding region. Those are our five big core tenants of values. On one hand they are values, and on the other hand they are really efficient system components that helps created a stabilized evolutionary system.

Can you provide an anecdote that you believe personifies Kalu Yala in a nutshell? 

There was a moment in Spring 2012 when we were early in the internship. I decided to go for a hike asking if anyone else wanted to tag along. We hiked up into this beautiful narrow river canyon, covered in rain forest and a new intern said to me “Jimmy, how do I stay here?” All I could think to respond was “Zach, you’ve got to figure that out man, but I’d love to have you if you can.” He ended up becoming the camp cook the summer after his quarter and stayed with us for about a year and a half.

At times, people have accused me of building ‘Never-Never Land’ and the fact that it’s not ‘real life’, it’s just a place that is an embodiment of ideals. I don’t think that ‘Never-Never Land’ means that we are not going up because we are doing back-breaking labor and dealing with issues and limited resources in the jungle, which a foreign environment creates. I do think it is ‘Never-Never Land’ in the sense that it is a place where you don’t have to compromise your ideals to be able to function as an adult.

 

How do you define the concept of ‘Never-Never Land’ in general? How is this being applied inrelation to your goal of alleviating poverty in tropical climates and engaging with local Panamanian culture? 

Never-Never Land is how you create the most desirable lifestyle in the most affordable and practical manner possible. That concept ends up becoming universally applicable and adaptable to different situations. As much as we’re building this for ourselves in terms of how it functions, what we’re learning in order to do that is valuable to any community, but particularly to the tropics because the environment plays such a role in what your inputs and outputs of the system are.

Originally we wanted to integrate everybody. We were building a village that was for Americans that shared common ideals and local Panamanians as well as city and country people in order to establish a melting pot that resulted in a single culture. What we’ve learned though is that we really believe in cultural pluralism and that we are different. That is what makes us great together and what makes us so much stronger as sister communities.

What are you hoping to have 5 years down the road with Kalu Yala? 

We’re trying to establish multipliers. We are not trying to just be organic food; we are not trying to just be sustainable architecture. We’re trying to value-engineer what happens when you are focused on everything that goes into a complete life. To put it bluntly, being able to create what might be categorized as a ‘Whole Foods lifestyle’ on $1000. That includes everything; from your house, to your clean energy, socializing, to your amazing organic food and how it’s prepared.

The solutions that come out of this sense of value engineering have the ability to be applied across the tropics and into other areas of the world. I think it will really end up being a beehive of activity; the most relaxed, busy place in the world.

A Preview to the 2013 Social Good Summit

When sitting down to truly digest the mammoth three-day line-up that is the 2013 Social Good Summit, a profoundly overwhelming reaction may not be uncommon. Close to 200 guest speakers will be participating in a cornucopia of topical panels, keynote addresses and performances with a cast of characters that ranges from former Vice Presidents, A-list actors, Serial Entrepreneurs, and Philanthropists among others. With all of this information being disseminated in such a compressed timeframe deciding what to focus on first will certainly be a challenge.

We hope to remedy this dilemma with our Social Good Summit ‘MISSION Picks’ for each day of the three-day summit. Of course, the ‘Al Gore’s, & Richard Branson’s’ will be obvious favorites to the public, but the ‘MISSION Picks’ list emphasizes the panels and speakers that may be lingering in the shadows of those giants, and are more than worthy of your undivided attention. Now get out there and stimulate your senses, expand your mind, and embrace your ‘change-the-world’ spirit alongside some of the brightest minds the world has to offer.

Sunday, September 22^nd

12:54pm

The Quest for Conflict Free Technology: The New Wave of Natural Resources

Marcus Bleasdale (National Geographic – @marcusbleasdale)

Award-winning documentary photographer, human rights advocate, and avid traveler; Marcus Bleasdale’s work has been praised by the US House of Representatives, The United Nations and the House of Parliament in the UK. Having also been featured in mediums such as the New Yorker, The New York Times, TIME Magazine, and National Geographic, to name a few, Bleasedale is a renowned and respected figure in the world of photography, specifically for his work documenting conflict areas. As a multiple award-winning photographer for many international outlets, his exhibitions have been showcased far and wide, from NYC to Oslo. Bleasdale has also published two books: ‘One Hundred Years of Darkness’ (2002) and ‘The Rape of a Nation’ (2009).

1:26pm

The Future of News: From Passive to Active, Combining Awareness & Activism

Bryn Mooser (Co-Founder, RYOT – @brynmooser) | David Darg (Co-Founder, RYOT- @daviddarg), Ian Somerhalder (Actor & Entrepreneur – @iansomerhalder) | Pete Cashmore (Founder & CEO, Mashable – @petercashmore)

Over the past decade the digital explosion worldwide has been unprecedented, shifting the landscape of news and new-media as we know it in rapid sequence. With 2 billion people – and counting – with sufficient access to the Internet, news mediums and new-media outlets have a new role, to change the conversations, and empower their audiences to not only become informed, but to also be engaged and inspired toward taking action. Insert the RYOT crew – Bryn Mooser, David Darg, & Ian Somerhalder – and their new media platform committed to enabling their audience to ‘become the news’ by becoming directly involved with the stories, and causes they promote.

2:06pm

Making Malaria “the First Disease Beaten by Mobile”

Martin Edlund: (CEO, Malaria No More – @MNM_Martin)

“Malaria No More (MNM) was born of a simple, startling insight: that ending malaria deaths is the best humanitarian investment we can make in the world today.” – MalariaNoMore.org. Since 2006, the team has been engaging world leaders and the public in hopes to unite towards defeating malaria and its stranglehold on many populations in the developing world. As a founding member, former Chief Marketing Officer, and now CEO, Martin Edlund has taken the reigns of MNM and implemented initiatives that are leveraging mobile technology to amplify campaign engagements.

2:17pm

Changing the World 2.0: Volunteerism

Amita Dahiya (Volunteering & Post-2015 National Coordinator, United Nations Volunteering), Dan Frankowski (UN Online Volunteer, Data Scientist at Pinterest – @dfrankow), Richard Dictus (Executive Coordinator, UN Volunteers – @RDictusUNV), Sam Santiago (Vice President, American Giving Charitable Fund)

The word, and concept of ‘volunteering’ itself is one that has been a ‘buzzword’ over the past year, gaining a great amount of attention within a diversity of circles. The reality is that we as engaged global citizens are conscious to the benefits of volunteering, not only for the communities and organizations in which we work, but for our own personal growth as well. We seek more than simply staying in lavish hotels overlooking the Mediterranean. The pursuit of authenticity and true cultural exchange is what drives many of us towards volunteerism, and that pendulum is now shifting in the direction of the masses. With representatives from the UN Volunteer branches, and American Giving Charitable Fund, this panel will undoubtedly shed light on the future of volunteering, as we know it.

Monday, September 23^rd

2:08pm

Millennials Leading the Way:

Al Gore (Former Vice President – @algore), Parker Liataud(Polar Explorer – @parkerliautaud)

It is not uncommon to hear the Millennial Generation – or ‘Gen Y’ as many call it – to be referred to as a collective of soft, entitled, lazy, and narcissistic twenty-somethings lacking the motivation to roll-up their sleeves and do the ‘dirty work.’ While some of these stereotypes may ring true for some, the reality is that the Millennial Generation is an inspired collective of individuals primed to disrupt the world and incite some tangible change from the inside out. Having reported on millennial progress recently for MISSION.tv’s feature on  Millennial Trains Project, we believe, and have barred witness to this generation’s potential. While we cannot predict what Vice President Gore or Mr. Liataud will speak on, we wouldn’t be surprised if their talking points prove to be similar.

3:58pm

Is Shock Value an Effective Way to Spur Social Good?

David Harris (Executive Creative Director, Draftfcb London), Neeraj Mistry (Managing Director, Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases), Peter Koechley (Co-founder, Upworthy – @peterkoechley)

We have all seen it; images of children in the developing world sitting on rubble caused by violence within the region, African mothers peering into the lens of a high-tech camera with a helpless glare, the incredible destruction caused by Mother Nature’s almighty power through her natural disasters. These visceral images linger with us far after finding of them; but are they truly beneficial towards creating a sustainable social change? This issue will be delved into in full during this panel by new-media pioneers David Harris (Draftfcb London) and Peter Hoechley (Upworthy) alongside Neeraj Mistry (Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases)to unearth how exactly movements toward social good can be sparked, and the role Shock Value can play (or not play) into the conversation.

6:00pm

Making Peace with Technology: Drones, UAVs and Satellites as Tools for Social Good

Andreas Raptopoulos (Founder & CEO, Matternet – @matternet) | John Prendergast (Co-founder, The Enough Project – @EnoughProject) | Peter Yeo(Executive Director, The Better World Campaign)Whitney Williams (President & Founder, williamsworks)

As technology continues along its path of exponential growth, the possibilities for its practical use will evolve as well. Regrettably, at this stage in our development, many of our world’s most advanced technologies are contributors to the destruction of our planet and perpetuation of violence. This, of course, is not for no reason. The world is undoubtedly a dangerous place, with violent organizations worthy of eradication; but can’t we also take advantage of these technologies to help clean up the messes we have created? This idea will be considered on the panel ‘Making Peace with Technology’ with a cast of visionaries committed to harnessing our awe-inspiring technologies to address society’s most pressing issues.

6:21pm

The Key is We – Global Collaboration Now

Beejayre Kokil (Manager of Economic & Social Statistics, African Development Bank) | Harbrinder S. Kang (Sr. Director, Corporate Affiars, Cisco Systems, Inc.) | Ron Garan (Astronaut, NASA @Astro_Ron)

Collaboration is a word often thrown around in corporate boardrooms, job interviews, and all throughout the office; but how often are we trulycollaborating? With so many of us caught up in our own twitter-spheres, the concept of genuine collaborate is one that has maybe lost its luster in the digital age. But perhaps, this does not have to be the case. Our hyper-connected world enables the breaking down of structured barriers, empowering us to connect and collaborate with anyone with a Wi-Fi connection and mousepad. It’s a brave new world we live in, and the potential to collaborate globally should be one to excite coming generations for decades to come, which is what Beejayre Kokil, Harbrinder S. Kang, and Ron Garan will explain in detail with why Global Collaboration is the key.

Tuesday, September 24^th, 

1:05pm

Syria: Refugees, Faith & the Citizen Voice

Ana Therese Day (Independent Journalist – @AnnaOfArabia) | David Milibrand (President & CEO, International Rescue Committee – @DMilibrand) | Rajesh Mirchandi (World Affairs Correspondent, BBC)

Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that Syria has been one of the top news stories over the past few weeks. Civil War and chemical weapons used on its own citizens, have left the rebels and the present regime locked in a mortal battle for survival forcing thousands into refugee camps. While the coverage surrounding Syria has been vast, one element that has been lacking is the voices of the people on the ground living through the violence and terror. Through the lenses of independent journalist Anna Therese Day, CEO of International Rescue Committee David Millibrand and BBC Correspondent Rajesh Mirchandani, this veil will hopefully be lifted.

1:26pm

The Ocean vs. Space: Which is really the Final Frontier?

Alexandra Hall (Senior Director, Google Lunar XPRIZE – @glxp) | Paul Bunje (Senior Director, Oceans, XPRIZE )

A debate for the ages, and one that surely does not have a ‘right or wrong’ or ‘winner or loser’ in relation to which side your loyalties reside. Regardless of whether you fancy yourself a marine biologist or an astronaut, the back-and-forth between XPRIZE beneficiaries Alexandra Hall (Senior Director, Google Lunar) and Paul Bunje (Senior Director, Oceans) will be nothing short of fascinating. Prepare for a plunge, or flight, into our unknown final frontiers, above and below sea level.

4:32pm

#Unplug and Look Up: Re-examining Our Future Relationship with Technology

Baratunde Thurston (Comedian, Author, & Co-Founder, Cultivated Wit – @baratunde) | Jacob Park (Principal Sustainability Advisor, Forum for the Future – @Forum4theFuture) | Megan Kashner (CEO & Founder, Benevolent – @benevolent)

Let’s call a spade a spade. We are addicted to our technology. Many of us cannot go 10 minutes without checking our iPhones, twitter feeds, Instagram, and so on. It has gotten to the point where many of us become anxious at the notion of being disconnected – Example: when your iPhone is on 1% battery, does that paint the picture? – While it is undeniable that the digital age has brought some significant benefits, these underlying issues of disconnectedness in a hyper-connected world are just beginning to percolate. So how do we respond to this notion? Comedian Baratunde Thurston, Futurist Jacob Park, and seasoned non-profit leader Megan Kashner will lead the way into a future relationship with our technology that may be slightly more sustainable.

5:04pm

Why Clicktivism Isn’t a Dirty Word

Jay Jaboneta (Co-Founder, Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation – @JayJaboneta) | Jiba Rubenstein(Director of Outreach, Tumblr – @libawr) | Remya Raghavan (Head of Politics & Causes, Google+ – ) | Ruben Cantu (Founder, CORE Media Enterprises – )

Social Media has grown into one of, if not “the” arena consumers obtain their information from. Whether it be status updates from friends, the inside scoops into upcoming events, or breaking news about world happenings; the rapid flow of information through social media channels cannot be ignored. However, there appears to be a negative stigma, in some circles, toward the promotion of charitable, or activist causes via social media. The “‘Like’ or ‘share’ this photo to bring aid to struggling ______ citizens around the world,” are often scoffed at by the public as desperate. Is ‘Clicktivism’ a bad thing, or is it that it is not being used to it’s full potential? Jay Jaboneta (Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation), Jiba Rubenstein (Tumblr), Remya Reghavan(Google+), and Ruben Cantu (CORE Media) will dive into this subject in one of SGS’s final panel discussions.