TED and the Qatar Foundation have launched TEDinArabic—a joint two-year initiative that will provide a global platform for thinkers, researchers, artists, and change makers across the Arabic-speaking world to share their ideas with a global audience.
TEDinArabic is TED’s first initiative to focus on sharing solutions, inventions, and stories in the Arabic language. The initiative aims to profile ideas that can change perceptions, benefit societies, and inspire others. The intention is to amplify high-quality content produced in Arabic by native-speaking creators. A foundational part of the initiative’s engagement approach will include an ideas search stretching across the Middle East. Selected ideas will be celebrated at events throughout the region in 2021.
The ideas search will result in the selection of 16 speakers to give TED Talks at the partnership’s culminating flagship event in Doha, Qatar, in 2022. This event will offer the TED conference experience in the heart of the Middle East and showcase the boldest and most inspiring ideas to emerge from the Arabic-speaking world. “We are thrilled to partner with Qatar Foundation to bring ideas from Arabic-speaking regions to the world,” said Chris Anderson, head of TED. “We at TED have always valued the power of delivering talks in one’s native language, and the nuance and richness that comes with doing so—the TEDinArabic initiative is an important step in that journey. As we bring this program to life, together with Qatar Foundation, we are grateful for the support of an organization that shares our passion and dedication to education and ideas.”
Recognizing that everyone can make a difference in the world through the power of ideas, TEDinArabic will spread the ideas of Arabic speakers to new and diverse audiences, magnifying their reach and impact. Her Excellency Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, vice chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation, said: “Language is more than just a means of communication; it influences the way we think and how we frame our perceptions on a subconscious level. With TEDinArabic, I hope we can continue the process of amplifying ideas from our region to a global audience in a language that is synonymous with innovation and new thinking. We are proud to be partnering with TED, with whom we share the belief that everyone’s mind and voice can make a difference, as together we aim to build a new culture of idea generation that stretches across the Arab world and beyond.”
TED will also build out a custom digital destination that will serve as the vault for the initiative’s content library, which is aimed at topics that matter to the Arabic-speaking world. This will include a combination of TED original and TED translated content, such as blog articles, TED-Ed video lessons, and custom video content. TEDinArabic is intended to endure long after this two-year partnership as it sparks the imagination of people throughout the Arabic-speaking world and empowers them to share their ideas globally. The TEDinArabic website and its content will remain live and accessible even after the culmination of this partnership. More at TEDinArabic.ted.com.
