Host: TED is that space that amplifies voices that are hardly even heard.

Paul: As the only Ghanaian, I hope they will treat me well.

Panelist A: His idea is massive. It's intense and overwhelming. I'm sorry.

Vincent: I studied and drew my candle light.

Panelist B: He pulled it out of the bag.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: That red dot...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Movement is the currency of divinity.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: I predict things are about to get crazy.

Host: Oh, look at that. Come on. My name is Reggie Watts and my life changed forever when I got the opportunity to speak at TED. Now TED is searching the globe for ideas that could change everything. Nine TEDx events around the world, giving a global voice to the unknown. Six minutes that can inspire, motivate, and change their lives forever. But that's not all. Coached by an expert panel, one lucky speaker will be surprised with the opportunity of a lifetime.

Speaker A: It's just so exciting. Wow.

Speaker B: This is exactly the opportunity to reach out to millions of people.

Speaker C: It's the biggest stage in the world. It's bigger than any dream.

Host: There were a bunch of people that were reading their scripts.

Speaker D: Small batch lines.

Speaker E: There's a lot of work to be done.

Speaker F: No, no content notes.

Speaker G: Can I start again?

Speaker H: This cannot go.

Speaker I: It blew me away.

Speaker J: Wow.

Speaker K: I'm really sorry. It's so big.

Host: This is the TED idea search. Africa, the cradle of humankind and a birthplace of ideas. And amongst its 54 countries, to the west sits Nigeria. Lagos, a vibrant mega city fueled by Afrobeats, ambition, and Nollywood. The former capital is home to 20 million people, but today it's a select few that rise above the rest to become the fourth group in our global search to stand on the TEDex stage. From amongst them, one will win the opportunity of a lifetime.

Female Host: Hello speakers. Welcome y'all. Welcome. Welcome. And huge congratulations to each one of you because right you were chosen from among so many applicants. So just the fact that you are here and ready to share your talks is absolutely incredible.

Speaker L: When I saw the application I was like I have this idea in my head sitting for long and I needed the right platform the right space to put it out. TED is that space is that space that amplifies voices that are hardly even heard and given opportunities to create opportunities that I might not even realize are out there for me.

Paul: TED is one of the biggest stage to share ideas to the world. I'm Poencen. I'm a scholar and executive director of Dean Center in Acra Ghana. I want to share with the world an idea of an African centered education. We were colonized. Therefore, our education system is geared towards a foreign concept which does not serve as in our context and also African's development. I'm a big fan of TED. I've watched people on stage share their ideas. So, I felt it's time to share to the world the idea. You are part of a global idea search and just one of you will be chosen to go on and take the main stage at TED in Vancouver.

Speaker M: When I heard there's going to be a selection for Vancouver, I just thought in my mind that could be me and Vancouver will find me if it needs me. Just being able to pitch this idea in front of global audience. Well, some of them are going to be funders, some of them are going to be partners, some of them are going to be people who have the resources and the platforms to provide those solutions.

Sadia Adu: I couldn't imagine getting to have that opportunity. It was surreal for me like to know about that. I'm Sadia Adu. My idea is about how local marginalized communities contribute to the booming industries in the world and are left underdeveloped and under supported. Feel like TED is the right place to get my message to reach wider audience.

Female Host: Tomorrow when you give that talk, we the TED panel, Mercy, Kelly, and myself will be listening really carefully.

Kelly Stetszel: I'm Kelly Stetszel. I'm leading the TED panel. My role at TED for the past 20 years has been curation. So, I've worked with thousands of speakers on the TED stage to select them, to help them develop their talks and get them ready to share them with the world. I'm so passionate about this initiative in particular because it brings up ideas that we could not have found any other way. Things that I look for are really the strength of the idea, but you then have to make it land. The delivery is how well they connect with the people in the room.

Kelly Shu: My name is Kelly Shu. I run Ted's YouTube channel. So, anything that gets distributed on Ted's YouTube goes through me first. I always believe that content is king. And so, if it's a great talk and it's great delivery, it will do well. But selfishly, I'm always looking for a really concise way to like present it to people. I plan to bring my knowledge of what I think our audience enjoys. You can honestly have an amazing talk in person, but sometimes on the screen it's like not as intriguing as it was in real life. I'm a sucker for an inspiring TED talk that just makes me feel like there's hope again.

Mercy Akamo: Joining them on the panel is Legos Local and TEDex organizer Mercy Akamo. One thing that's so special about TEDex Lagos is the fact that we've been able to spotlight ideas that resonate with us here in Lagos, Nigeria, but also on the continent and globally. I'll be looking for the way that the speaker is able to connect with the audience and how really scalable is the idea that they're sharing. Having someone from TEDex Lagos go and represent the region here at the global tech stage is amazing. So I'm feeling very proud and also very excited.

Female Host: We're so excited to see all of your hard work and ideas come to life on tomorrow's stage. And good luck.

Host: GOOD LUCK EVERYBODY.

Host: STEPPING ON TO THE TED Main stage really is the opportunity of a lifetime. It has hosted some of the world's most influential visionaries, leaders, and architects of the future.

Speaker N: We have a long way to go in front of us.

Host: Sharing their ideas to a room of thousands, entrepreneurs, investors, and change makers, each waiting to be moved, provoked, and inspired. This is a moment when we have to rise to this occasion. But the power of TED doesn't end when the lights go down because the talk joins a global library of ideas watched by billions. Doors opened, media attention, book deals, and funding and support for their projects. Standing on the TED main stage is more than delivering a talk.

Speaker O: All I want to do is show joy and hope.

Host: Your impact magnified far beyond the moment.

Speaker P: Bonjour.

Speaker Q: That's what life is about. About daring greatly about being in the arena.

Speaker R: It's a journey I've been on myself. So, I know how hopeful the speakers will be for that opportunity.

Host: With the daunting task of taking the stage just 24 hours away. The speakers get a final chance to rehearse, refine, and sharpen their talks. One thing that people tend to do that I'll just go ahead and point out so that we can use shorthand if it happens today because it probably will is like when we're a little nervous our bodies tend to move. Dr. Caffy will know a lot about this and we can sometimes end up swaying and that lulls the audience into a little bit of a rhythm and it you know you can see that like right now I just stopped swaying and all of a sudden I seem more confident. So when you're on the stage, you just want to move thoughtfully when you move.

Host: Please welcome Dr. CAPPY.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Before man could speak, he moved. Dance by definition is a form of human expression. My name is Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala. I am a dance entrepreneur, creative director and wellness coach. My main focus is to advocate for the creative industry's growth. The system of the world has kind of like created boxes where if you do not fit in, then you are not seen in a certain light. This talk gives me an opportunity to spotlight myself as a testament to how that is just a meopic perspective. dance giving me an opportunity to express and amplify my voice for people to embrace the idea that no job is too small nor is it too little to bring honor um to improve your environment to impact humanity. I just believe that innately we all carry worth. Every one of you in this room are dancers. You just aren't using music.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: For every time you pick up that clipper and apply the coordination of trying to cut that hair to get that style of for that time that you cook in your restaurant, the sequence of putting and plating and putting together your ingredients is a flow and the sequence of creation.

Speaker S: I think everybody who's gotten to this stage is equally very great. I've listened to them speak and I've seen how sound and beautiful their ideas are.

Speaker T: The sound of sewing machine has always been part of my home. A rhythm of survival and skill.

Speaker U: For me, I think it's more joyful to be in a space of Africans who have smart ideas and intellectual ideas as well.

Speaker V: Our curriculums are built based on inheritance of our colonial masters. To present in front of my fellow Africans was lovely. Our classrooms has a dynamics of teacher who is the master and student sitting at the back.

Paul: I'm the only Ghanaian among the speakers and I'm in in Nigeria. You know Ghana and Nigeria has this little banter going on. So my fear is as the only Ghanian I hope they will treat me well. Today I lead a team of 47 people. We digitize 14,000 archives a day. We're on track to do 5 million archives this year to make it accessible to the people in Ghana.

Panelist C: Paul's from Ghana. I think I love the nobility of his idea of expanding knowledge beyond the way it was served to us through colonialism and westernization and the way it was also delivered. I really really did enjoy enjoy that Paul is just incredible. I think his idea is massive too. So I really love him. He knew the talk so well too and was able to really deliver. In 1968, the same thing happened. Many people remember Ghana must go. And these are things.

Panelist D: Wait, what happened to the lights? We seem to have a power cut.

Vincent Agoro: Power outbreaks really affects people across Africa. We have over 600 million people who are living without electricity. My name is Vincent Agoro. I work as the head of Africa at Resource Justice Network where we're working to ensure that the energy transition is equitable, it's fair, it's just. I've been so passionate about speaking about the other aspect of the energy transition that is not being spoken about which is about the skills that we need to power Africa. The biggest problems that we're facing is not really about the tech. The people to do the work have not even been trained. We need to begin to train the people for them to power and provide the solutions that they need themselves. Every night at 1000 p.m. our campus generator shuts down. For 5 years, I studied and drew by candle light.

Speaker W: When I came here today, I was still thinking, will I be able to manage my lines? Will I remember my talk and so on? But I've been able to manage that. And across Africa, hundreds of millions more leave this same story. Yet we say our solution is oil or gas.

Speaker X: Every single idea among the speakers is great. Is all African centered is everyone trying to solve a problem and that gives me so much joy.

Speaker Y: These are not stories of technology. They are stories of people of skills. The coaches have been very supportive. You know, boosting my confidence about you know this stuff, you're able to do it and that's really helped me.

Panelist E: It's a really powerful idea. It's so simple yet it can make so much impact. Vincent did a beautiful job on his talk today which could impact electricity beyond Nigeria but certainly makes a huge difference here.

Sadia Adu: That sound didn't just shape my family, it helped shape Nigeria's fashion identity. It helps shape Nigeria's fashion identity.

Sadia Adu: It's intense and overwhelming for me. Fate's story did I practice a lot but I was stuttering and stammering. A craft passed down from generation to generation. a craft passed down from generation to generation.

Sadia Adu: Oh god, I'm sorry.

Panelist F: She has a lot of memorization still to do and a lot of practicing to do with her slides.

Sadia Adu: Oh, I forgot the slides. I'm sorry.

Panelist F: Definitely definitely practice with the slides so that that doesn't trip you up tomorrow too cuz I think you still got time to just really like make sure that you're in great shape.

Speaker Z: It went well, but it's also quite quite drilling. It's a long day. From about 9:30 or 10 when we started up till now, I was still, you know, really practicing about it.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: You repeat after me and you do as I do. Everybody say do as I do.

Audience: Do as I do.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Good. So, you...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: you and me must move.

Speaker AA: to grow. I was very very fond of the fact that the main TED talk coordinators were able to give their insight. I felt that really is good. The only note I have is when you talk about innovation moves and flows, right? I wondered if you might want to just link it a little bit more directly to dance and just like by saying like dance really spell out the main idea in like a sentence.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Perfect sense. Perfect sense. Thank you very much.

Speaker BB: The feedback was a confidence booster for me to hear from many people of the things I need to tweak on and the things I need to amplify. the slide about the New York text. It was a lot of text and I did find myself like reading it and then like not really like listening to you for a second. Maybe dimming that down or skipping it. I'm feeling really confident. Maybe I shouldn't feel that confident. It's a lot about just like practicing with their slides. I seeing that's like a common thing. Once they get that choreography down, I think they'll be good.

Speaker CC: The venue itself is really big. So many lights and the colors and everything there. It's like a dream come true. I've been on stages, conferences, but this is something different. You just spotlight that red dot.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: I have thought about it, dreamt about it of what would it be being on the dot. It will be very very joyful. I've had my first run at um just being on the stage there and I'm hoping that tomorrow I'll be able to kill whatever stage fright that I have um because I've been on the stage itself today.

Speaker DD: is TEDex and I'm here right now in this huge platform. I have six minutes to express what I embody and how that affects the world around me.

Speaker EE: I have a little bit of nervousness and fear, but I I'm sure I will overcome that.

Speaker FF: Stage flight can kick in when you're not practicing prepared. The goal is prepared tonight. And then also I got some feedback on some of the words I put in. So I'm going to remove them and restructure them for tomorrow.

Host: A new day breaks in Lagos and it's crunch time for our speakers. With just a short while before their talks, every moment of preparation now counts.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Let's wake up our bodies. Let's tap tap tap tap tap tap tap your legs. Tap one leg.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: All right, let's tap the bellies. Let's tap our chest and our arms. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. We're here. We're here. We're about to get on the T stage.

Speaker GG: All right.

Speaker HH: It's a dream come true for me. I will say it in short, a dream come true.

Speaker II: I just want to be there and have fun. Be as relaxed as possible. Those are my hopes. I hope that the room get ignited by the story, by the idea and they all can go back home empowered mentally from what it is that you know I I do share.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 right foot. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 left foot. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8.

Speaker JJ: Africans are communal. It's not about who gets selected to the next stage or who gets selected to Vancouver. It's a representation of us. big yawn.

Speaker KK: I'm very confident that I'm going to win this. It's important that one has that self-belief in in everything that one does. And I've got that belief that I'm going to be the person that gets it.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Let's loosen our lips. Let's lip roll.

Speaker LL: It will be awesome to win. It will really be so big for me to to win. One, two, three.

Speaker MM: I guess everything.

Host: With the speakers all warmed up and technical checks complete, it's time for TEDx Legos to begin. One by one, the speakers will give their talks with the hope of impressing the panel and winning that ticket to the TED main stage. Everyone, please give it up for Dr. Cathy Shafu.

Kelly Shu: Kelly. Oh, I'm so excited. We are here in Nigeria and everyone is ready for these talks. The audience is going to be really loud. Okay, we'll turn the headphones down.

Kelly Stetszel: Dr. Cathy is beloved here. I mean, listen to that audience that like she hasn't even said a word yet. Mhm.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Before man could speak, we moved.

Kelly Shu: Listen to that. They're in conversation. You're getting the snaps and the claps. First line. What? So, let's play a game together. What you think I am saying?

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: It is important to note that the power of communication is what helps us evolve.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: two and a half decades ago. It's full hardy to tell your parents that you want to be a dancer. In my own house is...

Kelly Shu: these local words in local languages are really making an impact.

Kelly Stetszel: I don't think they take away at all from our English only understanding of the talk either. They add to it completely.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: I am a testament to the fact that the art of movement serves multiple industries. Dance speaks for fashion, movies, health and wellness. And the biggest one there right now for those Tik Tockers in the house, dance is one of the greatest powerhouse when it comes to advertising.

Kelly Shu: Afro beat will not get to the world without dance being the vehicle.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: So it is important to note that as I speak for dance, I speak for you because you all dance every day. The tailor, the photographer, the hairdresser, the mama biligate that is flying that acara with so much precision and rhythm and flow. She and you and I are worthy of investment because movement is the currency of divinity.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: So I stand here today with an idea, an idea that I have embodied that you should not deprive yourself with the limitation of the metric system and the world telling you that you need to be somebody by design of a box designed by a system that is still trying to figure itself out. So rise up right now everybody stand up on your feet.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: I predict things are about to get crazy cuz you are going to commit today not just to you but to the world that you are unstoppable because you move.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: So repeat after me. You...

Audience: you...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: and I...

Audience: and I...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: must move...

Audience: must move...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: to grow...

Audience: to grow.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: I beg.

Audience: I beg.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Ask swag now. You...

Audience: You...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: and I...

Audience: and I...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: must move...

Audience: must move...

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: to grow...

Audience: to grow. I beg.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: I beg.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Let's try with the drums. Are you ready?

Audience: Oh my gosh, I'm so ready for this.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: And I must move to grow. I beg. So let's add rhythm. You and I must move to grow. I beg. One more time.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: So ladies and gentlemen, my idea is your idea.

Audience: Hands on your chest.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: I move.

Audience: I move.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: because there are no boundaries within me.

Audience: Because there are no boundaries within me.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: THANK YOU.

Kelly Shu: OH, LOOK AT THAT. COME ON. She wrapped it up and just few seconds over. Well done.

Kelly Stetszel: Look, they're bowing. I mean, this is definitely a strong idea, but I guess how is it going to stack up against the others in terms of the global impact it could make? And if you were to strip away the audience and if you were to strip away the energy in the room, would that idea be strong enough to stand alone?

Kelly Shu: I think that's important to consider.

Dr. Kafaya Tawa Shafala: Yeah. Lots of words. Um I I am in a place right now that I don't know how to capture my emotions and name it. But I would say that audience, the energy, the aura, the the way they received the message, I felt that I did it. Yeah, I did it.

Kelly Shu: Wow, that is going to be a tough act to follow. Good luck to whoever's next. Mhm.

Female Host: Please join me in welcoming Sadia Adu.

Kelly Stetszel: The words that she has put to this story are gorgeous. Yesterday, um I don't think she had practiced yet actually clicking through the slides while she delivered the talk. So, she really had a lot to overcome last night. Like I hope she rehearsed like crazy because I want to see her nail this today.

Kelly Shu: If she can nail the delivery, this one would be incredible.

Sadia Adu: Before Lagos became the fashion capital of Nigeria, before African designs walked the runways of Paris and Milan, there was FA, a small historic community in Ko state, Northern Nigeria. But centuries ago, people didn't just stop there. They stayed, they traded, they created, and they built something timeless. The sound of sewing machine has always been part of my home. A rhythm of survival and skill. But that sound didn't just shape my family. It helped shape Nigeria's fashion identity.

Kelly Shu: She's messed up on some slides. Oh yeah.

Sadia Adu: Our people train others from Ghana, Niger, and Cameroon who later moved to Lagos seeking bigger markets and exposure. That's how FA's creativity spread. Our people are people are people. Oh no, it's getting harder and harder. I think she's getting stressed out because she sees what's happening here. When you hear forget today, you rarely think of fashion or creativity. You think of drug abuse, street thugy, poverty, and illiteracy.

Sadia Adu: It hurts to watch a community that once helped clothe the nation now struggle to clothe itself with dignity. If we empower the marginalized communities, we build peace, stability, and peace and innovations for the world. So imagine walking through fate 10 years from now. This the harm of sewing machine powered by solar energy young men and women designing clothes that walk the runways of Paris and Milan. Then imagine the ripple effects when one community rises others will follow because what Fagen needs isn't charity. It's a connection. It's a recognition. It's a chance to scale what already exists. A chance to prove that the next global story of fashion, of science, of innovation, and more can rise from the home of a small community.

Kelly Stetszel: Now that's the Sadilla I want to see the whole time. I know.

Kelly Shu: Come on.

Kelly Stetszel: Maybe the next global fashion inspiration won't come from Paris, Milan, New York, but from the home of the sewing machine in Fei. Hopefully. Thank you.

Kelly Stetszel: She did bring it back and I'm so glad she let everyone meet her and see who she really is. And I'm just really I'm heartbroken that the slides threw her so much.

Kelly Shu: I wish the whole 6 minutes for like the last 30 seconds of that talk.

Sadia Adu: I really didn't think I'll be able to do that because it was like my heart was beating fast. It was pounding. I was I don't know how I did it. I would say it's grace. I didn't know how I did actually. Seriously.

Female Host: Next up, we have Vincent who is talking about tapping into human skills to solve big problems. Mhm.

Kelly Shu: I can tell this guy's a competitive one. So, I know he probably worked real hard last night to get this down. When I was an architecture student, every night at 1000 p.m. our campus generator shuts down.

Kelly Stetszel: Listen to the audience react to that. I think it's something, as I understand, they're familiar with.

Vincent Agoro: For 5 years, I studied and drew by candle light. I can still smell the wax dripping and feel the smoke sting my eyes as I struggle to complete my drawings in the dark. In fact, if you walk past our studio, then you might have thought that we're performing a spiritual ritual. Those candles taught me resilience. But they also revealed how fragile our systems are when one switch controls millions of dreams.

Vincent Agoro: Today over 85 million Nigerians live without electricity. That's about the entire population of Germany. Across Africa, hundreds of millions more live this same story. Yet we say our solution is oil or gas or megawatt or solar panels. But the truth is the biggest bottleneck in the energy transition is not technology, it is skills. Who will install the solar miniig grids? Who will maintain the batteries?

Kelly Shu: He is bringing the passion today. Like I wonder almost if he was holding back yesterday like this. I love this Vincent.

Vincent Agoro: in Kaduna. I met a lady Haja Amina a tomato seller who used to watch her tomatoes rot in two days but when she got a solar dryer and the training to use it she became the supplier of our whole town making more money as a result. So here's my idea. Treat skills as infrastructure.

Kelly Stetszel: Good clear setup on that idea. So now we know why we're listening from here on out. Mhm.

Vincent Agoro: But if every project reserve just 10% of its budget for training youth and women, we'll be building two power plants at once. One of steel and panels and one of people. Now this is not just Nigeria's story. It's a global one. From Legosier to Lima, from Delhi to Detroit, communities are racing to embrace renewables. But without the people to install and manage them, the clean energy revolution could stall.

Kelly Shu: People in Vancouver need to hear this. They really do.

Vincent Agoro: Think of it. The world is fighting to extract lithium, fighting over cobalt, fighting for rare earth when the most valuable resource is sitting on top and that is human potential. The most renewable resource on earth is not the sun or the wind or even the minerals in our soil. It is people. And when we invest in their skills, the lights won't just come on. They will stay on. Thank you.

Kelly Shu: And look at that. 5 and a half minutes. Mhm. I love how at the end he tied it back to the story he said in the beginning as well. I mean the the narration of his talk was so flawless to me. He set it up perfectly. I wasn't confused ever where he was going or confused where he was at.

Kelly Stetszel: and he got a standing ovation. He pulled it out of the bag.

Vincent Agoro: I think it went very well. I I think that people were um people resonated with it and it's something that most people in the room understood. They felt it. It's probably a gun base without electricity. So, it's something that they know and um it's something that that is relatable.

Female Host: Okay. Next up, we have Paul who is talking to us really about bringing African history to Africa, to the countries in Africa. He's from Ghana. It's big. It has the potential to make really massive impact. And for me, he's a front runner. I can't wait to see what he does today. I'm I'm excited for this one.

Paul: Queen Elizabeth is here. Speak English. That was a description in my primary school. I remember on one Tuesday I spoke my local dialect tree. I was severely beaten and warned not to speak tree in the school again.

Kelly Shu: Kind of a shame this talks in English. You know.

Paul: pictures like this was not in my textbook or my English books. My books and reading books and textbooks were pictures and stories of other people not like me. In many institutions today and many of our education system, our model has an invisible form of colonial history. We were well schooled but never educated.

Kelly Stetszel: That's a good line. That's a really good line.

Paul: That void and that emptiness led me to study in US with the hope of furthering my education. My first history class was history of America to my disappointment. Whilst in school I started collecting photo books, books stories that will transform and make it accessible to the people of Ghana and Africa. Today I lead a team of 45 people. We have the biggest photo library and history books in Africa.

Kelly Shu: is so passionate about this and I'm like glad I think we're getting to see that in him now.

Paul: it's my hope that African centered education a true model that can transform our continent that can provide the agency the tools the knowledge and the value system which is inherent in us before colonization that truly transformed us it's my hope that all Ghanaians, all Nigerians, all Africans to be able to get to know each other, know our history, know our context, and transform the continent. Thank you.

Kelly Stetszel: I don't think this was his best delivery, but I'm really glad to see that the audience resonated with it. Yesterday, when we heard this, because he had variation in his tone and his cadence throughout the talk, it made me feel really emotional. And today when he delivered the talk, it was all at a pretty high level of intensity which kind of stripped the feeling out of it. The delivery piece just wasn't there today.

Paul: It went great uh as the only Ghanaian um in Nigeria. Yes, that's fine.

Host: After the remaining talks are complete, the audience leave their seats, giving them a chance to digest the afternoon's ideas.

Audience A: This is my first T event and I think it was such a brilliant lineup of speakers. I like the authenticity. I like the originality of thoughts. I found them to be truly truly intriguing and interesting and um I would say refreshing as well. Dr. Carp, she said something about movements like creates emotion and all of that. So that resonated with me. So yeah, I found that session in Princeton.

Audience B: I'm actually very interested in clean energy, right? So, I was looking forward to Vincent's speech and it was really exceptional.

Audience C: Vincent's talk really did stand out to me and um um was very compelling.

Audience D: Fad, the lady that talk about fashion, Faji, I think it's very interesting to know that I most of us didn't even have an idea that a city in Nigeria exists. I don't know. They were just all good. I mean, if we judge by the applause, we're going to take Cafe, but then everybody was just boo. It was just authentic. It was just too unique. So, yeah. May the best win.

Audience E: I think it's going to be very close, but we never know who's going to win.

Host: The audience may have their favorites, but it's now down to the panel to decide who will secure a spot on the TED main stage.

Kelly Shu: Okay. What do we think y'all? That was so good. Um, I think overall it was I think every single person was just remarkable.

Mercy Akamo: It was amazing. Like I want to come to every TEDx Legos ever of all time because because I want to feel that energy like that once a year will sustain me forever.

Kelly Stetszel: Incredible.

Mercy Akamo: Incredible. Okay, so you guys they did incredibly well. But now we are going to have to make a decision and I guess we should start having that conversation, right? Okay, Sadia, I know this doesn't matter, but her outfit, her outfit was so good.

Kelly Stetszel: I know there is no way you could have been sitting at your desk in New York trying to research speakers that you ever would have come across this idea, which is part of the challenge. I feel like she's a perfect idea search type of speaker. The talk is strong and maybe with another day or two of like constant rehearsal getting that clicking down right, you know, it could have leveled up maybe. I think so too.

Kelly Shu: Um, okay. Dr. Cathy. Well,

Kelly Stetszel: I mean, the audience went absolutely wild for her. She like...

Kelly Shu: Yeah.

Kelly Stetszel: She like controlled them.

Mercy Akamo: from top to bottom. Yeah. Yeah. It was really good. I mean, we know Cafe in Nigeria has a popular, you know, dancer. She's amazing. But like, you never really know when you bring in someone of that caliber on stage to give a talk like this. And well, the way she roped everything in, the way she controlled the crowd, the way she the energy that kind of came up from the talk and the performance, it was wild really. I mean, she has presence like almost no one I've ever seen before. The tricky part is it's not a totally new idea either, really. It's kind of a motivational talk, which there's nothing wrong with a motivational talk, but it's just not as meaty as some of the other talks. I don't think this talk would land on YouTube because you kind of it's like one of those you like you have to be there, you know?

Kelly Shu: Vincent,

Kelly Stetszel: I thought Vincent rocked it. And I think he also improved so much from yesterday as well. Like he was so confident up there and he was funny. Like he kind of hit all the points for me. If you could get a lot of countries to adopt that thinking and that practice, it could totally change the world. I think I mean this is to me just a giant idea.

Mercy Akamo: Mhm.

Kelly Stetszel: Okay. Paul Paul's work is undeniably incredible, but I don't know. I thought that there was a little less personality in his talk today than what I saw in rehearsal yesterday, which makes me really kind of sad to say.

Mercy Akamo: Something was just a bit not right. But the idea of what he's doing, I love it. And it's something I would definitely want to see replicated across different parts of Africa.

Kelly Stetszel: This is going to be tough.

Mercy Akamo: Wow.

Kelly Stetszel: But we got to go break the news.

Mercy Akamo: Okay.

Kelly Stetszel: Okay. Let's go.

Host: Decision made. And for one lucky speaker, a 7,000mi journey to the TED Main Stage awaits.

Kelly Stetszel: We are so proud of each one of you. You worked so hard on these talks and then when you walked out on that stage today, each one of you totally and completely delivered. And here's where things get tricky. At the end of the day, it is delivery. It is connection to the room. It is how the idea is going to land on a stage elsewhere that is for a truly global audience. And so we considered all of these things together along with the audience's feedback and we have come to a decision and...

Kelly Stetszel: and the winner is infant.

Vincent Agoro: So so grateful for this opportunity. There's a lot just even if I didn't win, I just needed my speech to be on TED YouTube. That's what I was coming for really. And now I'm going beyond that.

Kelly Shu: It's an idea that is complex and it's like tangible and I think he had a pretty simplistic way to explain it that I think most people would understand. and also his personality on stage today just like shine. So I think he had the delivery and the idea and his name had a star next to it for me.

Kelly Shu: to Vancouver.

Vincent Agoro: If I was a sports person, I would say that I got a ticket to represent my country, my continent in the Olympics. There are a lot of people in that audience that care deeply about renewable energy that are going to be excited to hear what he has to say and help him think about how to put this into action in a really significant way. And that's a huge factor why Vincent was chosen to go onto the big stage in Vancouver.

Speaker NN: I've seen people who've appeared on the TED talk and their lives literally changed.

Host: with Vincent earning his place on the TED main stage to share his idea with millions. Our time in Lagos is up, but the TED idea search continues. Next time we arrive in a city where culture, creativity, and influence collide. London.

Speaker OO: Ready to go. Let's do it.

Speaker PP: You see? Oh, no. Straight away.