The human need to question why fuels our imagination and inspires innovation and creativity. From asking “Why can birds fly?” to “Why do bad things happen to good people?” the critical interrogation of the world around us leads to understanding and resolution. Tracing his journey as a Texas-born Mexican to becoming a professor of Russian and an advocate for social justice in education, Dr. Thomas Jesús Garza discusses the crucial role of the humanities and the transformative power of learning to ask “Why?” - the H-Factor - as an essential part of one’s education and personal development. From growing up in the small town of Refugio to negotiating the political and cultural complexities of Soviet-era Russia, Garza shows how the “H-Factor” and serendipity can change our lives. Dr. Thomas Jesús Garza is Associate Professor and UT Regents’ and University Distinguished Teaching Associate Professor in the Department of Slavic and Eurasian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. He is also the founding Director of the College of Liberal Arts Texas Language Center (2009-present), and past director of the UT Arabic Flagship Program (2015-2018). From 2004 to 2009 he served as Chair of the Slavic Department and Director of the Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies from 2002 to 2009. He teaches, conducts research, and publishes on Russian language and cultures, world language pedagogies, comparative cultures, and critical pedagogies in world languages education. His research has been published in scholarly journals including Foreign Language Annals, Russian Language Journal, Modern Language Journal, Slavic and East European Journal, and Current History, and has authored several Russian and ESL textbooks, including Breakthrough! American English for Speakers of Russian (1995), the first Russian-American collaborative textbook project on American English, and has contributed chapters to numerous volumes language and culture. He also recently coedited with Rachel Stauffer a volume of essays, Diversity and Decolonization in Russian Studies (2025).During his nearly 35-year tenure at the University of Texas at Austin, he received numerous prizes for undergraduate and graduate teaching, including the Harry Ransom Teaching Award, the President’s Award for Teaching Excellence, and the Liberal Arts Student Council Endowed Teaching Award. In 2003, he was inducted into the University Academy of Distinguished Teachers, selected for a U Texas Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award in 2009, and chosen a “Texas Top Ten” instructor by the Texas Exes in 2018. He led study abroad programs for UT undergraduate students to Russia from 1981 to 2020 under the auspices of the American Council of Teachers of Russian, of which he is also past president. In 2024, Dr. Garza was selected as one of “50 Alumni for 50 Years” by the American Councils for International Education for his work in promoting the study of Russian in the U.S. Dr. Garza earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Haverford College, Masters of Arts degrees from Bryn Mawr College and Harvard University, and his doctoral degree from Harvard Graduate School of Education. His current research is on critical pedagogy in world languages instruction, masculinity in contemporary Russian and Latino cultures, and Russian singer/songwriter/actor Vladimir Vysotsky’s travels to the Americas in the 1970s. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

This is the story of a completely ordinary person building a community of hope. The most important lesson that Chris Baker, Founder of The Other Ones Foundation, learned on his journey was the importance of having his ideas challenged and listening to those society has pushed to the fringes. From a chance encounter with a benevolent stranger, to an unexpected partnership with the state of Texas, Chris learned to set aside his preconceived notions and got to work changing his little corner of the world. Chris Baker is the founder and Executive Director of The Other Ones Foundation, a nonprofit on a mission to transition Austin's unhoused neighbors into an engaged community through shelter, opportunity, and support. Since graduating from the State University of New York at Oneonta in 2007, Chris has worked many different jobs in the field of homeless services and activism, but also as a musician, writer, and even paralegal. He started The Other Ones Foundation in the summer of 2017 to bring his innovative ideas for addressing homelessness to life via a client centered, people first approach. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Innovation is often perceived as a race to disrupt. But what if the real challenge lies not just in the act of innovating, but also in our own development through the process? Drawing from history and my experience in engineering design and startups, I’ll share key tensions innovators must navigate to create sustainable progress. Advanced tools are ineffective if users lack the readiness or context to utilize them; therefore, we need a new paradigm of innovation that considers both what to build and who we—as creators and users—must become. Brannon is a Senior Hardware Engineer with over 15 years of experience across several companies within the technology industry. He is passionate about using engineering to address societal challenges, and has dedicated his career to harnessing technological advancements to create meaningful change.As the first electrical engineer hire at ICON 3D, an Austin-based startup revolutionizing housing with 3D-printed technology, Brannon played a pivotal role in developing groundbreaking solutions. His contributions in this space earned him a patent for 3D-printed housing technology. Brannon also collaborated with the City of Austin on homelessness initiatives, leveraging his engineering expertise to tackle critical community issues.Throughout his journey, from developing cutting-edge housing solutions to his current work in industrial automation, Brannon has seen the transformative potential of technology. However, he recognizes that true innovation must prioritize the human element, ensuring that progress addresses the needs of individuals and communities. Brannon remains deeply committed to applying his skills and knowledge to solve complex problems while ultimately driving sustainable change. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Kareena Sarkar, a junior at Canadian Academy, is passionate about unlocking human potential through better learning habits. Motivated by her struggles with academic pressure and distraction, Kareena dedicated her talk to Unlocking The Flow State. She shared how mastering focus and harnessing the brain’s natural rhythms can make studying more effective and enjoyable. Drawing on neuroscience and personal experience as an IBDP student, she explained how students can overcome procrastination, distraction, and overwhelm by eliminating flow blockers, setting clear goals, and building focus rituals. Kareena believes that unlocking the flow state can empower students to take control of their learning journeys and unlock greater confidence, productivity, and balance in their lives. Kareena Sarkar, a junior at Canadian Academy, is passionate about unlocking human potential through better learning habits. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

World renowned AI researcher, Agüera y Arcas, invites us to rethink what it means to be intelligent—and even what it means to be human. As the boundaries between people, machines, and ecosystems blur, he explores a deeper understanding of intelligence as something fluid, nested, and shared. This talk challenges our assumptions about cognition, identity, and progress, encouraging us to see artificial and natural minds not as separate, but as deeply intertwined. With clarity and care, Agüera y Arcas paints a future where collaboration—not control—defines our relationship with emerging intelligences. It's a bold vision for what comes next, grounded in wonder and humility. Blaise Agüera y Arcas is a VP and Fellow at Google, and Google’s CTO of Technology & Society. He leads an organization working on basic research in AI, especially the foundations of neural computing, active inference, evolution, and sociality. In his tenure at Google he has led the design of augmentative, privacy-first, and collectively beneficial applications, including on-device ML for Android phones, wearables, and the Internet of Things; and he is the inventor of Federated Learning, an approach to training neural networks in a distributed setting that avoids sharing user data. Blaise also founded the Artists and Machine Intelligence program, and has been an active participant in cross-disciplinary dialogs about AI and ethics, fairness and bias, policy, and risk. Until 2014 he was a Distinguished Engineer at Microsoft. Outside the tech world, Blaise has worked on computational humanities projects including the digital reconstruction of Sergei Prokudin-Gorskii’s color photography at the Library of Congress, and the use of computer vision techniques to shed new light on Gutenberg’s printing technology. Blaise has given TED talks on Sead­ragon and Pho­to­synth (2007, 2012), Bing Maps (2010), and machine creativity (2016), and gave a keynote at NeurIPS on social intelligence (2019). In 2008, he was awarded MIT’s TR35 prize. In 2018 and 2019 he taught the course “Intelligent Machinery, Identity, and Ethics” at the University of Washington, placing computing and AI in a broader historical and philosophical context. He has authored numerous papers, essays, op eds, and book chapters, as well two books: a novella, Ubi Sunt, and an interdisciplinary nonfiction work, Who Are We Now? (review by the Financial Times here). His upcoming book, What Is Intelligence?, will be published by MIT Press in 2025. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

"Digital Pulse" is a contemporary solo exploring the conflict between human and machine. The piece reflects a sense of urgency, blending emotion with mechanical precision. Dynamic shifts within the movement symbolize the human struggle to keep pace with technology. Emma Frye was born and raised in Hickory, North Carolina, where she began her dance training at age four. Training in a competitive setting as well as with a pre-professional ballet company set her up to expand her versatility as a dancer. Emma is currently a student at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts working toward a BFA in Contemporary Dance as well as a minor in Arts Entrepreneurship. While studying at UNCSA, Emma has been exposed to a variety of dance techniques, including Cunningham, Limón, Horton, West African, partnering, ballet, and composition. Her performance experience includes works by José Limón, Pascal Rioult, Endalyn T. Outlaw, Ming Yang, Wesley Williams Jr., and Fernando Carrillo. In her time at school, she has worked towards strengthening her technique as well as finding her artistic voice. She has spent her summers training at intensives with Bruce Wood Dallas Dance Company, Koresh Dance Company, UNCSA, Nashville Ballet, and Pas de Vie Ballet. After getting her BFA, Emma plans to pursue a Master's degree in dance and aspires to join a contemporary dance company. She is eager to share her passion with others through performing and teaching. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx