Nerd Nite Liberia: January 20, 2015
For those of you who are new to Liberia or missed Nerd Nite in the past, Nerd Nite is essentially Ted Talks, with beer. Three people will present for 20 min. on a topic of their choice, with time for Q&A following each presentation. Come learn some fascinating new information that is likely unrelated to your day job, hang out with good people, and enjoy a meal or a beer or two.
In an effort to inspire new people to present, I’m bringing back some MVPs for this Nerd Nite, including a return to some of the most popular topics and presenters from previous Nerd Nites (myself not included, but I’m the host, so there).
Presentations include:
Not Just Lincoln and Kennedy: The True Stories of US Presidential Assassinations—By Tracy Slagle
And
Branding 101—By Charles Dorme Cooper
And
Are you sure Suriname is not in Africa?: How the slave trade and the bold acts of a courageous few led to modern day African villages in the heart of the Surinamese jungle—By Dara Lipton
Here’s more info about the presentations and presenters:
Not Just Lincoln and Kennedy: The True Stories of US Presidential Assassinations—By Tracy Slagle
Facts surrounding American presidential assassinations tend to get lost in silly conspiracy theories or nonsensical coincidences – when the facts about the more than twelve successful and attempted assassinations are often even stranger than fiction. Learn about the assassin who, after being the most unpopular member in a vegetarian free love cult, decided he should kill the President, the number of would be assassins that were instructed by either God or a dead president (or Charles Manson) in a dream to murder the President, and why poor President Ford was the only President to be the victim of assassination attempts by women.
Tracy currently works for Tiyatien Health, where she spends her days talking about community health interventions and policy, and supporting the Ministry of Health’s management of the EVD Response. During her free time she likes to tell anecdotal stories about American presidents, which her friends have assured her is a perfectly normal thing to interject into conversations. Tracy is also sorry that she is giving this presentation again to those that have already seen it, but her only other options on short notice were discussing the developmental stages of kittens or Taylor Swift, so she thought everyone would enjoy this more.
Branding 101—By Charles Dorme Cooper
Branding has proven to be the single most effective device for influencing consumers in today’s marketplace. In fact our identities can be largely defined by the brands we interact with, whether it’s by those we actively select or reject, or by those we simply don’t notice. Every day we are exposed to between 3,500 to 5,000 brands, and a brand can often be the most valuable asset on a major corporation’s balance sheet. In his presentation Charles will explain the basic concepts of branding, using examples from some of the world’s most prominent brands.
Charles Dorme Cooper is a Liberian communication designer who specializes in branding, marketing, graphic design and web development. With over a decade of experience, his clients have included Bank of America, Blackboard Inc., ePals Inc., UNICEF, USAID, World Bank/IFC, PSI Liberia, the Liberia Maritime Authority, the National Investment Commission of Liberia, and the National Port Authority of Liberia. He is a co-founder of Liberia’s first “dot-com” company, www.COOKSHOP.biz, and he is also a founding member of the Liberia Marathon Trust. Mr. Cooper has degrees in Graphic Design and Visual Communication.
Are you sure Suriname is not in Africa?: How the slave trade and the bold acts of a courageous few led to modern day African villages in the heart of the Surinamese jungle—By Dara Lipton
Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, hundreds of thousands of slaves were transported from various countries in West Africa to the Caribbean and northern South America to work the plantations of their British, Portuguese, French and Dutch slave owners. Many of these newly arriving slaves fled into the rainforest and created independent communities that survive today and retain many of the linguistic, cultural, and social characteristics of their West African ancestors. Dara will focus on these retentions among the West African descendants living in the jungles of Suriname.
Dara works for an INGO in Monrovia focusing on civil society and media sector strengthening, has lived in Liberia for two years (as of January 10th), and has been the host of Nerd Nite since July 2013. She hopes you will be inspired by this evening’s Nerd Nite to sign up and present next month.
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