TEDxTUDublin

Speakers

Speakers may not be confirmed. Check the event website for the latest lineup.

• Colin Judge

  Paralympic table tennis player

  Colin Judge is a Paralympic table tennis player, speaker, and actuary who has defied the odds despite being born with no legs and one arm. Although he had a happy childhood, he struggled with confidence during his teenage years and hit a low point. Determined to change, he found table tennis, which transformed his life. He began to accept himself and quickly excelled, making his international debut within four years. He studied Actuarial and Financial Studies at UCD, graduated with a 2:1 degree, and worked at KPMG before taking a sabbatical in 2019 to pursue his Paralympic dream. Colin is a two-time Paralympian, European Champion, and seven-time Irish national champion. He now shares his story to inspire others.

• Dr Lollie Mancey

  AI ethicist and TV & Radio presenter on RTÉ

  Dr Lollie Mancey is an anthropologist and futurist exploring how artificial intelligence is changing human culture, knowledge and decision-making. With a PhD from Trinity College Dublin, she brings an anthropological lens to emerging technologies, asking whose values, wisdom and worldviews are being encoded into the intelligence we are building. She examines the intersection of AI, ancestral knowledge systems and sustainability, and how plural ways of thinking can help societies navigate rapid technological change. Lollie is also co-presenter of RTÉ’s science series Futureville, where she explores how innovation may shape the future of Ireland and beyond.

• Dr Peter Wynn Kirby

  Environmental specialist at the University of Oxford

  Peter Wynn Kirby is a climate and energy specialist and ethnographer at the University of Oxford, and a Senior Member of St Antony’s College. He holds a PhD in Social Anthropology from the University of Cambridge and has held academic positions at leading global institutions, including visiting roles in Tokyo, Paris, and New York. His research focuses on nuclear energy in Japan, France, and the UK, Fukushima decontamination, renewable energy adoption, e-waste in East Asia, and material transformations such as recycling and radioactive processing. These themes explore the complexity of the climate crisis. He is the author of The Coming Surge (2026), which examines climate challenges, energy futures, AI expansion, infrastructure, and global geopolitics. He has also published widely in anthropology and writes op-eds for major outlets like The New York Times and The Guardian.

• Dr. Eoghan O'Grady

  Senior Lecturer

  Dr. Eoghan O' Grady is Senior Lecturer in Strategy and Leadership in the Faculty of Business, TU Dublin with extensive experience of teaching internationally in the US, Canada, the Middle East and across Europe. In addition to teaching and supervising in these disciplines, he also heads up the Leadership Development module on the TU Dublin MBA programmes. He is Lead Coach for the undergraduate and postgraduate teams that compete in several international strategy competitions. His research interests lie in the leadership and strategy space but also on career development with focus on structural and agentic influences on career choice and progression.

• Emmy Coffey Nguyen

  Founder of ProudPlanet

  Emmy Coffey Nguyen is the Founder and CEO of SpeakFor, a platform connecting speakers with event organisers. She previously founded ProudPlanet, supporting businesses with sustainability solutions, and works as an Independent Speaker with the European Commission Representation in Ireland. She has collaborated with organisations such as UNICEF, Salesforce.org, and the World Trade Center Dublin, and previously worked in climate and sustainability roles. In 2021, she was appointed by the Irish Government as a National Citizen Representative to the Conference on the Future of Europe. A Politics and International Relations graduate from UCD and alumna of the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, Emmy speaks on climate justice, human rights, and responsible business, contributing at the UN, European Parliament, and OSCE.

• Fiona Parfrey

  Co-founder of Riley

  Fiona Parfrey is co-founder of Riley, a B Corp certified startup that's building a world with women in mind. What started as a fight against toxic menstrual products has become a movement to help women thrive through better care, better access and better education. Hailing from Cork and a proud graduate of University College Cork (UCC), Fiona has spent a decade immersed in the startup ecosystem. With extensive experience in e-commerce and marketing, she owned and successfully sold a previous business before launching Riley alongside co-founder Aine Kilkenny. Under their leadership, Riley is assembling a robust team in Ireland and the UK, with bold plans to expand globally and create a world designed for women. On a personal level, Fiona is wife to Graham, and mum to her adored son Arlo who she is raising in Cork. Any spare time is spent with family and friends, preferably in nature or over good food.

• James Doyle

  Social media influencer

  James Doyle started his social media career showcasing his fitness transformation on tiktok in 2022. James' funny and relatable content has gained him millions of social media followers over the last two years and he has now taken to the music scene. James' content stretches across fitness, lifestyle, fashion, comedy and mental health with a huge gen z audience.

• Sophie Becker

  Professional Athlete

  Sophie Becker is a 400m and relay athlete who has represented Ireland at two consecutive Olympic Games. A three-time National Champion and European medallist, she is one of Ireland’s foremost sprinters.Alongside her athletic career, Sophie holds a degree in Genetics and Cell Biology and works in pharmaceutical research, giving her a unique ability to combine practical performance with scientific understanding.Through her social platforms, she shares insights into training and nutrition while documenting her life as an athlete travelling the world. With a passion for the outdoors, she creates engaging and visually appealing content inspired by her experiences. When she’s not competing, Sophie enjoys sea swimming, time in nature, cooking, reading, and yoga, balancing life as both an athlete and a scientist.