Join us at TEDxSUNY Oswego 2025. Be inspired by our incredible speaker and their powerful ideas.
Speakers
Aunrée Jacques Laurent Houston
Talk Title: The Ingredients of Purpose
Marketing Operations Executive at Netflix®, Life Enrichment Coach, and Alumnus of SUNY Oswego
Houston, a SUNY Oswego alumnus, is the founder of Aunrée Jac Inc., a Marketing Operations Executive at Netflix®, an artiste, and a certified life coach. He co-hosts The Professor and the Princess podcast and is currently writing Béing: The Art of Living! Previously, he served as VP of Operations at HBO and Paramount, and shaped the marketing of iconic series like Bridgerton, Stranger Things, Wednesday, and Game of Thrones®.
Dr. Yonggang Wang
Talk Title: Chasing the Snow: Exploring the Science and Adventure of Lake Effect Snow
Meteorologist, Climatologist, and Associate Professor of Meteorology at SUNY Oswego
Dr. Wang, a Meteorologist, Climatologist, and Associate Professor at SUNY Oswego, specializes in cutting-edge research on weather and earth system modeling, hydroclimatic predictions, lake-effect thunderstorms, and Arctic cold-air outbreaks. With over $1.9 million in external research funding, he has earned top honors, including the 2023 Award of Excellence in Research (Gold) and the 2024 Provost’s Award for Scholarly and Creative Activity.
Christopher Stein
Talk Title: Surviving Technology - Tools for Life
Landscape Designer, Artist, and Assistant Professor of Technology Civilization at SUNY Oswego
Stein is a business owner, creative, and educator at SUNY Oswego with a passion for writing, drawing, and photography. A licensed Technology teacher since 2003, he has delivered over 17,000 lessons on technology’s creation and impact. He illustrated a book on educational tech, develops his own film in his kitchen sink every Sunday, and was featured by Analog Forever in 2021 for his Consumerist Geometry series.
Dr. Natalia Lewandowska
Talk Title: The Timekeepers of the Universe
Chair of the Noise Budget WG, Shineman Planetarium Director and Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy at SUNY Oswego
Dr. Lewandowska, an astrophysicist and Director of the Shineman Planetarium at SUNY Oswego, is a global expert in single radio pulses. Passionate about the cosmos since age 5, she has conducted research across Europe and the U.S., earning a Ph.D. and joining NANOGrav. She has worked on NASA’s NICER mission and explored pulsars and neutron stars using some of the world’s largest telescopes, including the Green Bank Telescope.
Aiden R.J. Wilson
Talk Title: Sowing Seeds and Reaping Opportunities
President of the Student Association at SUNY Oswego and International Student from Bahamas
Born and raised in Nassau, The Bahamas, Wilson left home in 2021 to study Finance, Marketing, and Health Science. Battling homesickness, he chose to engage with campus life, leading to roles as a Resident Assistant, Laker Leader, S.T.A.R.T. Peer Mentor, Student Representative for the Oswego University Foundation, and Admissions Intern. Embracing challenges, he thrived and was ultimately elected President of the Student Association, representing the student body.
Dr. Robert Simmons III
Talk Title: Creating Dreams for Progress
Vice President of US Social Impact and Community Engagement at National Grid and the Executive Director of the National Grid Foundation
Dr. Simmons serves as the VP of US Social Impact and Community Engagement at National Grid and the executive director of the National Grid Foundation. Prior to his current role, he was a leader in corporate philanthropy at Micron Technology and CEO of the See Forever Foundation. In his early career, he was a celebrated educator nominated twice as a national teacher of the year and was noted as the chief architect of the Leading Men Fellowship, which is one of the largest social impact efforts to increase the number of men of color serving in early childhood classrooms.