Creating Mindful Connections: Life Beyond the 'Like' Button" | Susan Fox | TEDxNYU

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. In an age where more and more technology is meant to "connect" us, we may becoming increasingly distant from each other. Community organizer and interpersonal educator Susan Fox explains how harnessing the power of technology to develop a hyper-local online community can give us insights into making mindful connections in our everyday lives.

Susan Fox, Ph. D., is a community organizer and mother of two whose passion for connection has helped her create Park Slope Parents, one of the most successful online parenting communities in the world. Susan's first child was due September 12, 2001 and after the events of September 11th made the decision to focus on quality of life and community issues. Since that time Susan has led efforts to create online and offline networks of people who can support each other and the community. She founded Park Slope Parents in 2002 which has over 5,200 families. Susan has a background that is a tapestry of varied experiences. She has a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Susan worked as Executive Director of Research for an entertainment market research company, an assistant professor, program coordinator for an Easter Seals camp for kids with disabilities, yoga instructor, blackjack dealer and Can-Can dancer. She teaches a graduate course in Interpersonal Communication t NYU as well as consults companies in strategic marketing and communications. She is an avid photographer and face painter. Her most rewarding work-related experience, though, has been as a Brooklyn community organizer and founder of Park Slope Parents. Susan was chosen as one of the District Attorney's Brooklyn Extraordinary Women for 2009 and a Woman of Distinction in 2010 by New York State Senator Eric Adams.

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