TEDx Ulaanbaatar Change 2012 Meet the team
Mend-Orshikh Amartaivan Licensee & Founder 
Mend-Orshikh Amartaivan is a social entrepreneur and the founder and president of The New Media Group which is a social enterprise that provides professional consulting services in several areas focusing on new media marketing, information technology, and venture capital investment. Additionally, The New Media Group has cultivated a strong corporate culture of social responsibility and is dedicated to assisting non-profits and other organizations working to build a better Mongolia as well as “Empowering Human Centered Business”. He is passionate about social entrepreneurship and possesses a strong desire to create new solutions to social problems and then implement them on a large scale to change society for the better.Travis Hellstrom Co-Chair & Content Lead
Travis Hellstrom just finished three years of service as a Peace Corps Volunteer and Peace Corps Volunteer Leader in Mongolia, working as a health specialist in Sukhbaatar Province and in Ulaanbaatar with the World Health Organization. Travis also recently published the Unofficial Peace Corps Volunteer Handbook, the first book to offer advice to people applying and serving as Peace Corps Volunteers and that also helps raise funds that go to Peace Corps projects worldwide. After meeting in late 2010, Mend-Orshikh and Travis founded TEDxUlaanbaatar together and collaborated to establish the New Media Foundation. Travis is a member of the New Media Group Advisory Board and is now working as a CEO of the New Media Foundation. He also writes weekly articles for everyday humanitarians who are changing the world at AdvanceHumanity.com. Neal Detert Project manager
Neal Detert is Managing Director of SusDev Solutions, which he co-founded in order to meet the growing demand for an innovative, recognized and respected place to turn to for pro-poor sustainable development policy, strategy and business needs. Through SusDev, he works to find cutting-edge solutions to today's most pressing issues that are sustainable, pragmatic, actionable and profitable, delivering results to clients across Asia. Neal is an economist and green business entrepreneur with experience in both development and investment banking. His economic research has been profiled in the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, the New York Times and Forbes Magazine. Most recently, Neal worked as a Senior Analyst for Silk Road Management, a Central Asia focused investment management firm, and as a Strategy Consultant for Eurasia Capital in Mongolia. He also worked as an economist and consultant with the Asian Development Bank at their Tokyo institute and is a certified microfinance trainer. Like the other members of the TEDxUlaanbaatar team, Neal is an avid TED supporter. He volunteered in the organization and implementation of TEDxTokyo 2010 and is excited about making TEDxUlaanbaatar a landmark event, both for Mongolia and TED.Narantuguldur Saijrakh Operation Lead
Narantuguldur Saijrakh is the General Manager at Asia Pacific Securities, a Mongolian securities brokerage firm. He led the company to adapt a new corporate strategy and image, and introduce a number of complementing products and services. He is in charge of the day-to-day activities of the firm, as well as project managing for the parent company, Asia Pacific Investment Partners. Narantuguldur is a member of Junior Chamber International and Mongolian Repat Leaders Club and is actively involved in the clubs' events. Prior to joining Asia Pacific Securities, Narantuguldur worked for Frontier Securities as analyst and, during which, led the organizing team of an annual investment conference, which was attended by more than 500 industries' professionals. He has been actively initiating and putting together numerous of mid and large scale events and conferences throughout his college and professional career. He has been a fan of TEDTalks and has been passionate about "ideas worth spreading" for a long time now and therefore being a part of the organizing team of the very first TED event in Mongolia was a predictable life. Narantuguldur was involved with TEDxUlaanbaatar from the very beginning, i.e. application of the license, and is generally contributing to and coordinating every aspect of the organization.Christopher Thompson Host & Attendees Team Lead
Chris Thompson is from Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. He has been working at the International School of Ulaanbaatar since 2005, teaching English, literature and Theory of Knowledge classes. He holds a position as the Diploma Program Coordinator at the school and thus facilitates the curriculum for the 11th and 12th grades. As a teacher and advisor to student committees in the school, Chris has extensive experience in initiating and organizing enriching events. He often uses TED talks in his classes to get his students to see knowledge at work in the world today that leads to lively discussions amongst students. Prior to his current job, Chris first came to Mongolia in 2003 with the Peace Corps. Working with the English teachers of Tov province, he organized seminars and workshops to share American teaching methods with Mongolian teachers. He sees TEDxUlaanbaatar as a great opportunity for Mongolia to share its ideas with the greater TED community. Chris hopes that TEDxUlaanbaatar will just be the first of many events, leading to a tradition of knowledge and culture sharing that will keep Mongolians and foreigners living in Mongolia learning, discussing, and contributing knowledge for years to come. Chris is involved in TEDxUlaanbaatar as the editor of the English text contents on the events media pages and other marketing materials, as well as a contributor.Joe Flasher IT, Video, Audio team Lead
Joe Flasher is a freelance software developer from Boulder, Colorado currently living in Ulaanbaatar. He has been involved in several mobile application projects previously and is thrilled to bring that knowledge to the TEDxUlaanbaatar team. Coming from a town that has a vibrant startup community and a strong entrepreneurial spirit, Joe is excited to try and foster such an atmosphere in Ulaanbaatar. Joe has been a big fan of the TED series since its inception and is looking forward to help introduce not only TED to Mongolia but also, just as importantly, to show the world of TED what Mongolia has to offer.Uyanga Vladimir Performers Team Lead
Working a full-time job as a Sales and Marketing administrator, Uyanga juggles her life between the business world and the entertainment industry. A passionate self-employed dancer and singer, she has been a TED enthusiast since the very beginning. She is fascinated about everything on the web and believes that knowledge is the nutrient of the soul.
Batzorig Regzen Designing Lead
Batzorig Regzen is the CEO of The New Media Creative Studio, a subsidiary company of The New Media Group. The New Media Creative Studio offers highly professional creative graphics and motion graphic designs for individuals and companies. We have developed complex strategy which comprises of various design solutions to serve our clients with full satisfaction.