Alternate TED Programs

While the TEDx Libraries event that happened in New Jersey followed the standard TEDx guidelines, there are also several other formats that can be used to spread ideas within the TED network. As the popularity of the TEDTalks grew, many groups and organizations wanted to host similar events that followed a similar structure. To facilitate this increased interest, the TED conference organizers came up with a set of guidelines and different formats that are intended to create a normal framework from which a new TED conference can take place.

One of the main formats used is the TED Fellows program. Intended as a youth fellowship program, all of the TED Fellows conferences are filled with presentations from younger people that have made significant contributions to select areas of study. The program is intended to draw from countries other than the United States, although American youth can also be invited as well. Once a person has attended one of the TED Fellows conferences, they become official TED Fellows and are listed on the online directory of conference participants.

TEDWomen is another format that has been used in several situations. These conferences are meant to be focused on specific gender issues and how they relate to cultural identities as well as reproductive health. A recent TEDWomen conference that drew much critical acclaim was the one that was held in Timisoara, Romania in 2010.

One of the more different TED formats is the TED Books program. This publishing and writing program focuses on works that are less than 20,000 words. The goal of the fiction and nonfiction works is to highlight a specific powerful idea and still be read in a single reading session, thus forcing a focus of writing and transmission of the message. All of these TED formats exist to bring awareness to important topics and spread ideas across the world.