Join our Interactions Partners in our dynamic Interactions Zone as you arrive at the event, and during each scheduled interactions break!

We have five (5) interactions zones throughout the building, as depicted in the maps below.

Zones 1 to 3 (main lobby, lower level)

PLEASE NOTE: The special seating zone is reserved seating. After reserved guests are seated, additional participants may be seated in these areas as space permits

Zones 4 and 5 + Sensory/Quiet Room (upper lobby, Plus-15 level)

This lobby is accessible via the main social stairs, or via elevators in the East and West lower lobby areas)

Following the event, participants holding VIP tickets are invited to join us at The Ampersand's tenant lounge for a social event with other VIPs, speakers, and volunteers! Additional space will be available for drop-in participants.

The after-event will be cash bar, restricted to 18+ (ID required). Space will be limited due to fire code as necessary.

Introduction

We welcome you with the standard TEDx introduction video (required at all events), followed by a land acknowledgement, and then swing into our introductions for the day with hosts Jonathan Perkins, CEO and 2025 Curator and Tashina Jackson, Co-Curator and Speaker Coach. 

Speakers

Julien LePage | Finding Pace in Rhythm
Dr. Lina Kattan | Reimagining Traffic
Kate Thompson | Building Quality Cities
Gayathri Shukla | Finding Authentic Interaction

The Ampersand will be closed to the public for our event, and the normal on-site food vendors will be unavailable. If you'd like to bring in pre-event snacks, coffee/tea or water, please purchase these in advance from any number of nearby shops that are open on Saturday.

Please plan to complete registration prior to 11:50 a.m., as our event program will start at Noon sharp, and late arrivals will not be seated until a break between speakers.

Parking

Parking is available in the Harmony Parkade (formerly James Short), which is accessible from both 4th (Westbound) and 5th (Eastbound) Avenue. The venue is connected by Plus-15 from the East wing of the parkade, and a check-in/registration station will be available at the top of the ramp.

Public Transit

The Ampersand is within close walking distance of most downtown C-Train and bus routes. Please consult Calgary Transit's website for details. The street address is 140 - 4 Avenue SW.

Ticket Scanning/Check-In

When you arrive at The Ampersand, our check-in team will scan your electronic (mobile device) or paper tickets from Showpass. Check-in/registration stations are available in the Plus-15 ramp from Harmony Parkade, or through the WEST Tower doors, closest to 1 Street SW. There will be no access through the East Tower.

If you have forgotten your ticket, you will need to have the name of the ticket purchaser in order for us to retrieve your order.

Badging and Coat/Bag Check

Once you have been checked in, we invite you to pick up and "Style your badge". If needed, you can also check your coat or large bags at the venue coat check.

Our team members are there to guide you... if you have any questions, don't be shy to ask!

Sensory Accommodations

If you require sensory accommodations, please click to visit our Sensory Accommodations information.

Please note that, if you arrive late or have to leave the venue for any reason, you will need to wait for a break in the speakers to be admitted. It's the Canadian way of being polite and respectful of the speakers, eh?

The talks are being recorded for posting to the TEDx YouTube channel, and being in the venue implies your consent to be recorded on video and in still images.

Coming back from our first interactions break, we continue the pace with our next speaker block!

Speakers 

Wish Bakshi | Powering AI
Leela Aheer | Brave Democracy
George Damian | Innovating in Philanthropy
Dr. Laleh Behjat | Pace & AI at Micro Scale

Refreshments

Refreshments (coffee, tea, snacks) will be served from stations within The Ampersand lobby.

Interactions

Interactions are throughout The Ampersand. Visit our special interactions map and listings for details.

We come back from our second interactions break to finish our day with the final block of speakers

Speakers

Dr. Kerry Black | Exploring Water
Dr. Chelsea Matisz | PACE and our Guts
Shone Thistle | Poetic Exploration
Chad Lefevre | Transformational Changemaker

Refreshments

Refreshments (coffee, tea, snacks) will be served from stations within The Ampersand lobby.

Interactions

Interactions are throughout The Ampersand. Visit our interactions map under the Interactions Zone section.

Food Allergies

Please note that we cannot guarantee that food will be free from the common food allergens listed below. We regret the inconvenience. For specific concerns, please speak with catering staff on site.

If you have life-threatening chances of reaction, please be sure to bring your epi-pen device and identify yourself to our registration team.

Milk
Eggs
Fish (e.g., bass, flounder, cod, salmon)
Crustacean shellfish (e.g., crab, lobster, shrimp)
Tree nuts (e.g., almonds, walnuts, pecans)
Peanuts
Wheat
Soybeans
Sesame

With a career that spans building a socially-conscious occupational therapy practice and currently managing operations for her family's industrial lighting company, Shaffina Mohamed is an entrepreneur, community investor, and people connector at heart. Shaffina currently leads the Ismaili community engagement with the Aga Khan Garden, Alberta under the Aga Khan Council for Edmonton. With a strong interest in better understanding the parks and gardens restored and developed by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture worldwide -- including the new garden in Edmonton opening in October 2018 -- her quest for learning and understanding has led Shaffina to be the visionary for a multi-sensory production ‘Reflections in Paradise’ in an effort to bring awareness about the impact of these spaces on individuals, families, communities, and countries.

What does it mean to design technologies as public worlds? Dr. Pratim Sengupta, Research Chair of STEM Education at the University of Calgary’s Werklund School of Education has been working to understand this question by designing open source and open science technologies in public spaces and public schools through unsilencing hidden narratives and bringing us together. He is the recipient of a CAREER Award (2012) from the US National Science Foundation.

Dr. Sengupta co-presented with Dr. Marie-Claire Shanahan.