Theme: Paper Towns

Paper crinkles. A compass scratches against its surface, and a name is written. Years later, a town is formed.

In the early 20th century, cartographers and map makers would place fake towns, known as phantom settlements or paper towns, on their maps to protect their copyright. When cartographers Otto G. Lindberg and Ernest Alpers placed the fictitious town Agloe on a map to protect their copyright, they had no idea it would inspire a settlement of the same name years later.

These "paper towns” speak to the idea that small human actions lead to material change in the world. Few actions have outcomes as unknown but direct as the creation of Agloe, especially in our increasingly complex world. And yet, we hope our actions will have incredible impacts anyways.

At TEDxPSU 2025: Paper Towns, the 15th anniversary of the TEDx conference at Penn State, we invite you to find your own, small yet great, mark on a map as you hear ideas from eight speakers that once started as their own Paper Town.

Schwab Auditorium
E Pollock Rd & Pattee Mall
University Park, Pennsylvania, 16802
United States

Dima Abu-Aridah

Architect

Dima Abu-Aridah is a Jordanian architect and a doctoral candidate at Penn State's Stuckeman School of Architecture. Recognized for her research on the design and spatial dynamics of refugee camps, Dima's work focuses on how displaced individuals reshape their environments to foster a sense of community and belonging. Her PhD dissertation, "Who Designs the Camp? The Spatial Reproduction of Refugee Camps," explores the interplay between spatial planning of camp spaces and the human ingenuity of refugees in adapting these spaces. Dima has been honored with Penn State’s Graduate School’s Alumni Association Dissertation Award in 2023 and the Graduate Student International Research Award in 2024 for her innovative contributions to understanding the intersection of design and displacement.

Giorgio Corti

Youth Mayor

Giorgio Corti grew up in a small town close to Lake Como, Italy and moved alone to the United States in 2020 for an exchange program with his high school. He graduated in 2021 from Hopkinton High School in Massachusetts and decided to attend Penn State in August 2021. He is majoring in Management B.S. with a concentration in Finance and is a member of the Schreyer Honors College, where he is currently working on his final thesis. After graduation he would like to continue working in the investment banking industry but plans on first pursuing an MBA.

Jeffrey Edmunds

Digital Access Coordinator

Jeff Edmunds is Digital Access Coordinator at the Penn State University Libraries, where he has worked for more than 35 years. He helps manage access to the Libraries' millions of digital resources, especially eBooks, and is a fierce champion of open access to information. His texts have appeared in Nabokov Studies, The Slavic and East European Journal, McSweeney's, and Formules (Paris, France), among others. Jeff has decades of experience managing electronic resources in the context of a large academic research library which he now applies in lectures regarding e-books and their privatization.

Justin Leusner

Justin Leusner is a 22-year-old entrepreneur, storyteller, and follower of Jesus dedicated to addressing the Gen-Z mental health crisis through redemptive sports storytelling. As the visionary behind TDAY Sports, he leads a team of 30 creating Gen-Z-focused sports content that reaches hundreds of millions of fans monthly, earning 750 million views in just two years. Justin’s work uses the power of sports to share stories of resilience, hope, and purpose, inspiring a generation to find meaning beyond the digital chaos. A sought-after speaker, he has shared his insights at events like CreatorFest, UCLA Discovery Conference, and Youth Marketing Strategy in London and NYC. Featured on ABC, FOX, and CBS, Justin’s unique ability to connect, uplift, and motivate makes him a powerful voice in modern storytelling and a champion for positive change.

Laurel Pearson

Laurel Pearson is an associate teaching professor in the Department of Anthropology at Penn State, she is also a member of the Liberal Arts Sustainability Council advisory committee. She received her BA in anthropology from Louisiana State University and PhD in genetics from Penn State. Her research interests include human variation, health disparities and her work centers greatly around anthropology and the holistic qualities of a liberal arts education to discuss our role in building a sustainable future. She lives in the village of Pine Grove Mills with her husband, daughter, two cats, a dog, and a few chickens where she enjoys gardening and cooking.

Michael McShane

Professor of Medicine

Dr. Michael McShane is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Penn State College of Medicine. He is a clinician-educator that is passionate about improving the health and well-being of underserved communities. Dr. McShane is interested in the intersections of education, health systems, and sustainability. His research focuses on patient and community advocacy, ensuring their voices are heard when designing health solutions. He leads the LION Mobile Clinic, a student supported mobile effort to improve the health and well-being of the community.

Rian Griffin

Civil Engineer

Rian Griffin, a senior at Penn State studying civil engineering, is originally from Pittsburgh, PA. Upon graduation, Rian will join Kiewit, a construction company, where he’ll be involved in a variety of projects from maintaining bridges in New York to developing tunnel systems in Baltimore. His passion for civil engineering stems from its practicality. He appreciates how civil engineers positively impact everyday life, from the water we drink to the roofs we sleep under. He enjoys city biking and kayaking in his free time and is also a Young Life Leader at Penn State, where he works to transform how students in the State College area perceive community.

Vikrant Sapkota

Climate Science

ikrant Sapkota is a dual-title PhD candidate in Climate Science and Meteorology at Penn State University, specializing in leveraging observational datasets and climate models to understand uncertainties in future climate change projections. He serves as the Vice President of the Science Policy Society at Penn State and represented the university as the graduate student delegate at COP28, the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai. Vikrant has also worked as a Graduate High-Performance Computing Consultant, where he assisted departments across Penn State with their software and programming needs. He was awarded the Graduate Research Innovation Award from the Joint Fire Science Program and the Best Poster Award at the 2024 National Science Policy Symposium. He is deeply interested in the intersection of climate, public policy, and technology, with a focus on exploring innovative solutions like sunlight reflection methods to address climate change.