Software and pluralism, the trajectory of modern energy industries, and dynamic theatre on the run.

These are just a few of the things that our first batch of speakers — Hussein Charania, Peter Tertzakian, and Melanie Jones — will give us insights on as part of TEDxCalgary's first main event of 2013, Energy: Full Spectrum on May 11, 2013.

"We always have fun developing the theme for a TEDxCalgary event, and playing with the various ideas that flow from it" says event curator and licence holder Rahim Sajan. "Energy: Full Spectrum gives us the ability to cross many frontiers and disciplines when we think about how energy surrounds us in all its various forms... creatively in terms of how we can use it as a basis for theatre, literally in terms of how we think about the future scope of our energy use and production, and structurally in terms of how we can harness human ideas to make changes in our society."

If you've followed the path of Mayor Naheed Nenshi over the last few years, you'll know that he began his run to public office by being a passionate and informed commentator on civic engagement in the city. From his work on the Better Calgary Campaign, to his talk at our 2010 event, and to his work with Mount Royal University's non-profit studies program, he has been committed to improving the way Calgarians can access the democratic process at the municipal level, and to increasing citizen engagement in the public life of the city.

It's small wonder, then, that one of the first challenges he issued as Calgary's mayor was for citizens to take up the challenge of increasing civic engagement in the city. This evolved into the Mayor's Committee on Civic Engagement, who have worked over the last year to look at ways to mobilize and engage Calgarians in the wide range of initiatives that will help to make this an even better city.