Six young, inspiring local guest speakers working in such fields as business, art, and technology recently spoke to hundreds of students at an ideas talk in Ho Chi Minh City.

The talk, entitled “Tedx Ben Thanh: Vietnam 2.0,” which took place at Hoa Sen University on Sunday, welcomed some 250 students who came to listen to speeches by six inspirational guest speakers.

Nguyen Trong Khoi, a 24-year-old director whose film was selected to be screened in France last year, shared his story of living and working.

Phan Khac Huy, who established a low-cost class to teach young Vietnamese the country’s culture and history also spoke; as did Nguyen Nhu Huy, director of Zero Station, one of several emerging contemporary art venues in Ho Chi Minh City.

The event also featured two female speakers, including Mai Thi Hang, who has spent 10 years helping farmers earn money; and Duong Quynh Huong, who created a laboratory where passionate engineers can visit and learn about technology.

The last speech was given by Zen monk Thich Minh Niem, who talked about the meaning and pursuit of “happiness” and “success” in one’s life.

Tedx Ben Thanh’s concept is based on Ted Talks program, an American conference founded in 1984 in which guest speakers working in various fields such as technology, art, business, education, and non-profits are invited to talk about their story and experiences to inspire people.

The local version of the event was organized for the first time in 2012.

Titled “One thing a day,” the event attracted nearly 300 students, who came to listen to six speakers, including Jimmy Pham, director of Know One Teach One, a HCMC-based non-profit organization; Hoang Thi Minh Hong, the first Vietnamese woman to reach the South Pole, in 1997; and Dinh Bang Phi, an artist who has more than 60 years of experience in Hat Boi (classical Vietnamese opera popular in the north).

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