At age 80, Alan Warburton says his volunteer work to plan TEDxSurrey has made him feel more vital well into retirement years.
Formerly a school principal, the Ocean Park resident is the founder and licensee/curator of the annual talks, which feature 12 guest speakers at Bell Performing Arts Centre, next on Saturday, Jan. 20.
“Friends of mine tell me I’m completely nuts,” Warburton said with a laugh. “You know, ‘What are you doing? Why are you doing this when you aren’t getting any money out of it at all?’
“But I love it,” he continued. “It energizes me and gives me a real sense of purpose at this time in my life, so I’m taking it year by year. I’m not saying I’m going to be doing this five years from now, but my plan certainly is to finish this year and start again next year because I enjoy it so much.”
Warburton’s career in schools began in England and took him to the Bahamas for three years. He moved to B.C. in 1970 and worked in the Peace River region for a year before travelling south for a job in Richmond, where he worked for 30 years.
With a history in Toastmasters but little knowledge of TED, Warburton was involved in planning a White Rock TEDx talk in 2017. When that event didn’t continue the following year, he focused on starting one in Surrey. The first, dubbed TEDxBearCreekPark, drew close to 100 people to the Centre Stage theatre at Surrey City Hall.
With a move to the Bell in 2020 and name change in 2022, TEDxSurrey has grown to attract close to 1,000 spectators for a day of timed talks (18 minutes max) that aim to inspire, on a variety of topics.
• READ MORE: Look who’s talking at TEDxSurrey: Bios of the 12 who’ll speak on Jan. 20.
Surrey’s TEDx is now among the largest in Western Canada.
“Here we are in the sixth year and maybe we’ll be able to sell-out, which would be a big thrill for everyone,” Warburton said.
“The vast majority of TEDx’s stay at a level where they’re restricted to 100 attendees, because it’s much easier to manage that way, but that was never our plan. We had always wanted to have something in Surrey that would be reflective of the sort of community that we have, where close to 600,000 people live. We are a major city, so we wanted to have an event that could, in time, become a major event.
“Incidentally,” he added, “I have to be a Surrey resident to be involved in the TEDxSurrey event (as a licensee). That’s a TED rule.”
None of the TEDx speakers or entertainers are paid, nor are those who plan the event, non-profit by design. A ticket ($59/$99) includes lunch, entertainment and “energizers,” a speaker’s corner and prizes; a livestream is also available for $9.99 on the event website, where the 12 speaker biographies are posted.
There have been some challenges for Warburton and team over the years, including a pandemic that forced the event online in 2021.
“TEDxSurrey has been as successful as it has been because of a wonderful team of people, the volunteer group,” Warburton said. “And you know, several speakers have stayed with us to work with us as volunteers on our coaching team or on our curation team. So that’s been nice, too, to sort of build that type of a community.”
As curator, Warburton oversees a team that finds and selects the 12 speakers. “Then we pass it over to the coaching team, which is a different group of people,” he noted. “Ellie Newell is my co-organizer, and she’s the person who works with a couple of the coaches to look after the coaching team.”
Warburton says he’s proud of TEDxSurrey’s evolution and partnerships created, including one with Surrey Schools.
“We offer students (in the district) the opportunity to apply as a speaker, and we guarantee that at least one Surrey student will be selected as one of our 12 speakers each year,” he explained. “We love to hear fresh, young voices.”
