An independently organized TEDx event, licensed by TED and created for the community of Al Shahaniya — a gathering of ideas, people and conversations with the power to create meaningful change. More to be revealed soon.
In 2027, TEDxAlShahaniya will bring the spirit of TED to Al Shahaniya, Qatar for the first time. Under the open sky of Heenat Salma Farm, speakers, performers and a curious audience will come together for a day built around ideas — shared, questioned and carried forward.
Our hope is simple: to create a space where thinking in Qatar around culture, sustainability, education, innovation and community can be heard, challenged and connected — and to publish those talks to the world through the global TEDx library.
The event theme, speaker lineup and programme will be revealed in stages over the months ahead.
In the spirit of discovering and spreading ideas, TED has created a program called TEDx. TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. Our event is called TEDxAlShahaniya, where x = independently organized TED event. At our TEDxAlShahaniya event, TED Talks video and live speakers will combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. Speakers never pay to join a TEDx event. Consideration, speaker coaching and event participation along with attendance are all provided free of charge. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events, including ours, are self-organized.
Explore the TEDx program on TED.comIn the spirit of discovering and spreading ideas, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection. 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.)
TED is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to discovering, debating and spreading ideas that spark conversation, deepen understanding and drive meaningful change. Our organization is devoted to curiosity, reason, wonder and the pursuit of knowledge — without an agenda. We welcome people from every discipline and culture who seek a deeper understanding of the world and connection with others, and we invite everyone to engage with ideas and activate them in your community.
TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, but today it spans a multitude of worldwide communities and initiatives exploring everything from science and business to education, arts and global issues. In addition to the TED Talks curated from our annual conferences and published on TED.com, we produce original podcasts, short video series, animated educational lessons (TED-Ed) and TV programs that are translated into more than 100 languages and distributed via partnerships around the world. Each year, thousands of independently run TEDx events. Through the Audacious Project, TED has helped catalyze $6.6 billion in funding for projects that support bold solutions to the world's most urgent challenges — working to make the world more beautiful, sustainable and just. In 2020, TED launched Countdown, an initiative to accelerate solutions to the climate crisis and mobilize a movement for a net-zero future, and in 2023 TED launched TED Democracy to spark a new kind of conversation focused on realistic pathways towards a more vibrant and equitable future. View a full list of TED's many programs and initiatives.
TEDxAlShahaniya will take place at Heenat Salma Farm, a working farm in Al Shahaniya where agriculture, craft and community life continue side by side. It is a place shaped by soil, seasons and slow work — an unusual and honest setting for a day of ideas.
As evening falls, the gathering moves to the farm's campfire — talks and conversation under the open desert sky, in the oldest format for sharing ideas that humans know.
TEDxAlShahaniya is independently organized and operated under license from TED. Heenat Salma Farm serves as the host venue for the event.
The theme, the speakers, the programme and the story of how this event comes to life — revealed step by step between now and event day. Register your interest and follow along.