Life, love and finding a path: Talks from day 2 of TEDWomen 2023

Activist, filmmaker and entrepreneur Maya Penn hosts Session 3 at TEDWomen 2023: Two Steps Forward on October 12, 2023, in Atlanta, GA. (Photo: Jasmina Tomic / TED)

Day 2 of TEDWomen 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia featured an interdisciplinary array of ideas from speakers who are disrupting poverty, creating bold art, restoring Indigenous rights, exploring bioluminescence in nature and much more.

The event: Sessions 2 and 3 of TEDWomen 2023, hosted by TEDWomen editorial director Pat Mitchell and activist, filmmaker and entrepreneur Maya Penn

When and where: Thursday, October 12, 2023, at the Woodruff Arts Center in Atlanta, Georgia

Speakers: Tracie Revis, Diana Greene Foster, Aisha Nyandoro, Andre Dickens, Rosita Najmi, Esha Chhabra, Paige Alexander, Jay Bailey, Karinna Grant, Laetitia Ky, Glenn Close, Laurel Braitman, Wan Faridah Akmal Jusoh, Gary Barker, Lindsay Morris, Reed J. Williams, Maria E. Sophocles

A warm welcome: From Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who shared how the city has partnered with the Carter Center on a campaign called Inform Women, Transform Lives, which is aimed at raising awareness about women’s right to information.

Music: An enchanting, genre-bending performance of her songs “Universe,” “Statues” and “Liberation” by singer-songwriter and producer Buzz.

Tracie Revis’s ancestors were forcibly removed from their homeland in what is currently known as Georgia. Now, she’s working to reclaim part of that land, the Ocmulgee Mounds, and turn it into Georgia’s first national park and preserve, which would be co-managed by the Muscogee Creek tribe — tapping into the immense power of their ancestral homeland to heal generational trauma.

Does having an abortion negatively impact a woman’s life? Demographer Diana Greene Foster’s research, known as The Turnaway Study, shows that women who want abortions and get them experience better mental and physical health and socioeconomic well-being than those who are denied.

For Black mothers receiving guaranteed income through the Magnolia Mother’s Trust, a first-of-its-kind guaranteed income program in the US, a steady check meant having the power to uplift those around them. Inspired by their example, poverty disruptor Aisha Nyandoro wants people to redefine wealth in terms of the good it can create.

Don’t fret about your leadership style, says global development economist Rosita Najmi — focus instead on your leadership languages. She explains why the best leaders are “multilingual,” fluent in the languages of business, philanthropy and public policy.

“Sustainability” has become a business buzzword, but environmental business journalist Esha Chhabra thinks it’s time to dig deeper. She outlines the growing wave of regenerative companies — which take a far more holistic approach to operations, with every aspect of business driving towards solving a social problem — and shows how many of them are already making big changes in fashion, energy, food, agriculture and beyond.

Access to information is the key to unlocking human rights for all, says equality champion Paige Alexander. Leading The Carter Center, she and her team are connecting women to vital resources to get educated, start businesses and transform lives around the world.

When creating an incubator for Black entrepreneurs, Jay Bailey drew inspiration from Motown and HBCUs — two great models for economic mobility. What do they have in common? Bailey says both cultivate belonging and give people the freedom to believe.

What if you could buy the latest fashions without crowding your closet or growing your carbon footprint? Digital fashion entrepreneur Karinna Grant says that future is already emerging: NFTs and augmented reality are expanding possibilities for creative consumption while decreasing waste.

Artist Laetitia Ky creates incredible sculptures using the hair on her head (and a bit of wire), transforming it into surprising forms — an umbrella, a sunflower, wings, a raised fist — that promote bodily autonomy and self-acceptance.

In 2009, Jessie Close confessed to her sister, actor Glenn Close, that her son’s struggle with schizophrenia had filled her with thoughts of suicide. She recounts how this revelation inspired their mental health advocacy organization, Bring Change To Mind, which is seeking to transform society’s negative perceptions of mental illness.

“Life is just one endless sushi conveyor belt of things that are going to test you and teach you at the same time,” says writer Laurel Braitman. Sharing the story of growing up as her dad battled cancer, she shares wisdom on why you can’t have joy without sorrow, bravery without fear.

There are more than 2,000 firefly species that we know of, and they’re found on every continent except for Antarctica. Wan Faridah Akmal Jusoh explores the mysteries of these luminous beetles — which are an essential part of a healthy ecosystem — and details her quest to discover new firefly species and safeguard them as their habitats disappear.

From childhood, boys have violent impulses imbued in them by a society that emphasizes independence at any cost. Unsurprisingly, most violent crimes are committed by men. Gary Barker shares ways to overcome violence by cultivating male empathy.

After bringing her son to a summer camp for gender-nonconforming children, photographer Lindsay Morris launched a project to share the kids’ stories with the world. One of them, Reed J. Williams, is now a powerful advocate for transgender youth. Together, Morris and Williams reveal two sides to the LGBTQ+ experience — one as a mother, one as a trans woman — and offer poignant insight into the power of community.

Gynecologist Maria E. Sophocles explains the science behind menopause — and its unsexy impacts in the bedroom. From estrogen to advocacy, she offers some solutions for women to bridge “the bedroom gap” and get back to comfortable, pleasurable sex.