TEDxFTU

TEDxFTU is the independently organized TEDx event at the Ho Chi Minh City campus of Foreign Trade University (FTU HCMC), operating under license from TED to spread "Ideas Worth Spreading", now "Ideas Change Everything", among Vietnamese youth. Its roots trace back to 2012, when it began as TEDxYouth@DienBienPhuSt, organized by the university's Business & English Club (BEC). Over more than a decade of seasons, TEDxFTU has grown into one of the most established and well-known TEDx platforms among Vietnamese universities, bringing together speakers from a wide range of fields - arts, business, science, activism - to share ideas that spark reflection and connection among young audiences across Ho Chi Minh City and beyond. ------ This year's theme: "THE STILL F/LMSHOT" - "Meaningful Shots On The Spot" In an uncertain world, the pressure to be efficient has become the measure of everything, pushing people to constantly speed up just to keep pace with change. But when every experience is filtered through the lens of optimization, something is lost: our connection to what actually makes life meaningful. TEDxFTU 2026 pushes back against that pressure. We borrow the imagery of a film camera, a tool built around stillness, patience, and intention, as a symbol of a different way to exist. Just as a photographer must slow down, observe, and be fully present to capture a meaningful shot on film, the theme invites people to step outside the relentless drive for performance and reconnect with sincerity, presence, and human value. The ultimate goal of existing, the theme argues, isn't just to be efficient, it's to live meaningfully. As the film roll loads, this year's guiding companion through the scheme of "Kẻ Khắc Ảnh" (The Film Carver), begins their journey alongside the audience, framing the event's talks as a series of carefully composed, meaningful "shots" of insight and connection.