Inauguration Ceremnony Speakers
Dr. N. Kumarappan
Chair, IEEE Madras Section
Dr. N. Kumarappan
Chair, IEEE Madras Section
N. Kumarappan received the Graduate degree from Madurai Kamaraj University, Tamil Nadu, India
in 1982, the Post-Graduate degree from Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, India in 1989 and the Ph.D. degree from CEG Anna University, Tamil Nadu, India in 2004, under QIP fellowship AICTE, India.
He is currently a Professor with the Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and
Technology, Annamalai University. He is having 29 years of experience to his credit as an educator and
researcher. He has published more than 115 international journal and conference papers. International Journal Papers – 40, IEEE digital library – 33, International conference – 62, National conference – 8. His current research interests include power system operation and control, electricity price forecasting, EHV transmission fault diagnosis, FACTS devices, power system reliability, smart grid and artificial intelligence techniques.
Dr.Kumarappan is a Life Fellow of the Institution of Engineer’s (India) anda Life Member of the Indian Society of Technical Education. He is an IEEE Madras Section Vice-Chairman, IEEE CIS Madras Chapter Chair and a Coordinator for more than 50 IEEE Madras Section organized FDP, Workshop and TISP
programs ect. He was the recipient of the IEEE Madras Section Motivation Award in 2010 and the Certificate
of Appreciation in 2012, third rank in the chapter activities 2015. He was the organiser of a special session in IEEE WCCI 2010 Spain and IEEE WCCI 2016 Canada. He is a Speaker, Reviewer and Session Chair forIEEE/IET-U.K. international conferences and other international journals. He was the outstanding reviewer for the Elsevier international journal of electric power and energy system 2015. He was the recipient of the IEEE-NNS Outstanding Paper Travel Grant Award, Australia 2002 and the IEEE PES Student Program Award, USA 2003.
Mr. Girish Khilari
Chair, IEEE Pune Section
Mr. Girish Khilari
Chair, IEEE Pune Section
Customer-centric engineering and business leader with focus on technology, data, and information. CTO and Head, India Operations. Manages end-to-end product portfolios with "Concept-to-Market" and "Life-cycle" phases. Handled with great passion the teams of product developers, the group was responsible for the annual revenue close to $300M. Heads P&L responsibilities in product development, support,
maintenance and services organisations at global level. Manages groups responsible for both NEW and CURRENT engineering solutions.
In the career span so far, fortunate to work for/with both large enterprises and start-ups in various domains like product organisations, services companies, research setups, professional
organisations and educational institutes.
As a Chairman of IEEE Pune Section, instrumental in bringing technology to masses especially in education and agriculture domains. Purely a volunteering role. It helps in increasing the horizons beyond computers by forming the ecosystem of academicians, incubators, NGOs, agriculturists, government and technologists(engineering, physical sciences, computer science, data science). Special Interest Groups (SIGs) for Affordable Agriculture (AA) and Healthcare are formed. Enjoys mentoring raw talent in technical and people skills. Participates in many start-up operations.
Visiting faculty, Industry Advisory Board(IAB) member, Board of Study(BOS) member, Industrial Associate in the National Innovation & Startup Policy (NISP) for various universities including Savitribai
Phule Pune University (SPPU).
Ms. Emi Yano
IEEE Region 10 Women in Engineering Committee Chair 2019-2022
Ms. Emi Yano
IEEE Region 10 Women in Engineering Committee Chair 2019-2022
Emi Yano graduated from the Graduate School of Science and Engineering at Chuo University, Tokyo, Japan. She specialized in Kansei Engineering (Affective Engineering); human friendly information processing technologies for suiting diversity of user’s cognitive and behavioral responses.
Before assuming her current position, she worked in an information integration company as a Web Usability Engineer and has accumulated several years' experience in web consulting using the Human-Centered Design and Design Thinking process.
In 2009, she moved to Ricoh IT Solutions. Currently, she is focusing on personal training for engineers and improving communication between people in the workplace through effective leadership and organizational development in the HR department.
She also has been a very active volunteer leader in IEEE since 2008. She was the Chair 2016-2017 of IEEE Japan Council Women in Engineering and she is currently the Chair of Region 10 (Asia-Pacific) Women in Engineering Committee. Through IEEE WIE activities, she connects people and bring them a big smile!
Dr. Toshio Fukuda
2020 IEEE President & CEO
Dr. Toshio Fukuda
2020 IEEE President & CEO
Toshio Fukuda is a professor of mechatronics engineering at Meijo University in Nagoya, Japan. He is also a professor at the Beijing Institute of Technology and professor emeritus at Nagoya University. His research focuses on intelligent robotic systems and micro-nano robotics. He has published more than 2,000 articles in scientific journals, conference proceedings, and reports.
An IEEE Fellow, Toshio was director of IEEE Region 10 in 2013 and 2014 and IEEE Division X director/delegate in 2001 and 2002, and 2017 and 2018. He was president of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society in 1988 and 1989 and general chair of the IEEE International Symposium on Micro-Nano Mechatronics from 1990 to 2012. He has served on several IEEE boards and committees.
He graduated from Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan and received the Master of Engineering degree and the Doctor of Engineering degree both from the University of Tokyo. He joined the National Mechanical Engineering Laboratory in Japan in 1977, the Science University of Tokyo in 1981, and then joined Department of Mechanical Engineering, Nagoya University, Japan in 1989.
Dr. Lisa Lazareck-Asunta
Chair, IEEE Women In Engineering
Dr. Lisa Lazareck-Asunta
Chair, IEEE Women In Engineering
Lisa is a 20-year Senior Member of the IEEE and has been an elected and appointed volunteer for the Engineering in Medicine and Biology (EMBS) since 2003 and Women In Engineering (WIE) since 2013. Lisa’s background is in electrical engineering (BSc, MSc, DPhil) and her expertise includes biomedical signal processing; public engagement with science and engineering; charitable grant funding; and impact.
Dr Sri Niwas Singh
Professor (HAG), Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India
Dr Sri Niwas Singh
Professor (HAG), Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India
Prof S. N. Singh obtained his M. Tech. and Ph. D. in Electrical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, in 1989 and 1995. Presently, he is Professor (HAG), Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India. Before joining IIT Kanpur as Associate Professor, Dr Singh worked with UP State Electricity Board as Assistant Engineer from 1988 to 1996, with Roorkee University (now IIT Roorkee) as Assistant Professor from 1996 to 2000 and with Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand as Assistant Professor from 2001 to 2002. He was Vice-Chancellor of Madan Mohan Malviya University of Technology Gorakhpur during April 2017 to July 2020. Dr Singh received several awards including Young Engineer Award 2000 of Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE), Khosla Research Award of IIT Roorkee, and Young Engineer Award of CBIP New Delhi (India), 1996. Prof Singh is receipt of Humboldt Fellowship of Germany (2005, 2007) and Otto-monsted Fellowship of Denmark (2009-10). Prof Singh became first Asian to receive 2013 IEEE Educational Activity Board Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing Education. He is also recipients of INAE Outstanding Teacher Award 2016 and IEEE R10 region (Asia-Pacific) Outstanding Volunteer Award 2016. Dr Singh is appointed as IEEE Distinguish Lecturer of Power & Energy Society from 2019 and Industry application Society for 2019-2021. He is also recipient of INAE Outstanding Teacher Award 2016.
His research interests include power system restructuring, FACTS, power system optimization & control, security analysis, wind power, etc. Prof Singh has published more than 500 papers in International/national journals/conferences and supervised 31 PhD (12 PhD under progress). He has also written 23 book chapters, 6 Edited books and 2 text-books one on Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution and second is Basic Electrical Engineering, published by PHI, India. Prof Singh has completed three dozen of technical projects in India and abroad. His two NPTEL (YouTube) video lectures on HVDC Transmission and Power System Operation & Control are very popular.
Prof Singh was Chairman, IEEE UP Section for 2013 & 2014, and presently, he is IEEE R10 (Asia-Pacific) Conference & Technical Seminar Coordinator 2015-18. Presently Prof Singh is India Council Chairman and R10 Vice-Chair, Technical Activities (2019-2020) of IEEE, the largest professional body in Engineering. Dr Singh is Fellows of, IEEE (USA), FIET (UK), FNAE, FIE(I), FIETE, AvH.
Mr. Akinori Nishihara
IEEE R10 Director (2019-2020)
Mr. Akinori Nishihara
IEEE R10 Director (2019-2020)
Professor Emeritus & Designated Professor at Tokyo Institute of Technology
Specialties: Signal Processing, Educational Technology
Leila De Floriani
Professor at the University of Maryland and President of IEEE Computer Society
Leila De Floriani
Professor at the University of Maryland and President of IEEE Computer Society
Leila De Floriani is a professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, USA. She has previously been a professor at the University of Genova (Italy), and she has also held positions at the University of Nebraska, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the Italian National Research Council. De Floriani is the 2020 President of the IEEE Computer Society. She has been a member of the Board of Governors of the IEEE Computer Society (CS) since 2017. She is a Fellow of the IEEE, a Fellow of the International Association for Pattern Recognition, a Fellow of the Eurographics Association, and a Pioneer of the Solid Modeling Association. She is an IEEE Computer Society Golden Core Member and a member of the IEEE Honor Society IEEE-HKN.
She has been the editor-in-chief of the IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics (TVCG) from 2015-2018, and served as an associate editor for IEEE TVCG from 2004-2008. De Floriani is currently an associate editor of ACM Transactions on Spatial Algorithms and Systems, GeoInformatica, and Graphical Models. She has served on the program committees of over 150 leading international conferences, including several IEEE conferences, and has contributed to many conferences in a leadership capacity.
De Floriani has authored over 300 peer-reviewed scientific publications in data visualization, geospatial data representation and processing, computer graphics, geometric modeling, shape analysis and understanding, garnering several best paper awards and invitations as a keynote speaker. Her research has been funded by numerous national and international agencies, including the European Commission and the National Science Foundation.
Mr. Gunjan Gautam
Operations Officer, South Asia Energy Unit, World Bank Group
Mr. Gunjan Gautam
Operations Officer, South Asia Energy Unit, World Bank Group
Gunjan Gautam is Operations Officer at the World Bank’s South Asia Energy Unit. He co-leads South Asia Gender and Energy Facility (SAGE) at the World Bank. SAGE has been supporting South Asia Women in Power Sector Professional Network (WePOWER) and functions as the interim-secretariat of the network. Gunjan has B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering and M.Sc. in Public Policy with energy policy concentration.
Track 1 Inspire & Lead - Leadership Summit Speakers
Ms. Keerthi Santosh Varier
Design Thinking Coach and Senior Product Manager, EY
Ms. Keerthi Santosh Varier
Design Thinking Coach and Senior Product Manager, EY
As a Design Thinking Coach and Product Manager, Keerthi works with ideas that are in the early stages of the innovation life cycle (“just an idea”, “prototype”, “bootstrapped” etc.), and helps teams attain innovative breakthroughs. She helps teams crystallize their idea's value proposition and refine their pitches before they stand in front of investors. She supports people to become entrepreneurs (or corporate innovators), with confidence.
Keerthi’s background spans from coding to management consulting to starting new businesses, across the US, UK and Asia in multiple sectors. She graduated with a double major in Strategy and Marketing from Indian School of Business and holds an Engineering degree from the University of Kerala. She draws on her engineering foundation, business studies, and design thinking learnings (IDEO) to bring in a human-centered approach to problem-solving.
During her free time, Keerthi volunteers as a judge and mentor to local pitch competitions such as George Washington University’s PitchGeorge, NFTE DC Metro Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge etc.
Ms. Suganya Raman
Workforce Excellence Manager, Flex India
Ms. Suganya Raman
Workforce Excellence Manager, Flex India
An agile learner and a professional with over 14 years of experience in the areas of Talent Development & Management, Global Project Management, Lean, Organizational Effectiveness, Employee Engagement, CSER, PwD and Diversity & Inclusion. Passionate about Service to society & Inclusiveness activities
- Sign Language Expert; trained over 500 speech and hearing-impaired college students and employees of Flex
- Motivational speaker; Creating career intentionality in underprivileged girl students. Master trainer for Project Puthri
Ms. Mei Lin Fung
Chair & Co-Founder, People Centered Internet
Ms. Mei Lin Fung
Chair & Co-Founder, People Centered Internet
Chair, People Centered Internet co-founded with Vint Cerf. Closing keynote on Decade of Digital Transformation at the World Bank IFC Global SME Financing Forum October 2020, she presented at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Digital Economics launch in 2017. Mei Lin is an early pioneer of customer relationship management (CRM) now a $40B industry. Socio-technical lead for US Federal Health Futures initiative, she is on the WEF Cross Border Data flows, Payments and Genomics and Ethics working groups. Chair of IEEE Standards Association Industry Connections Social Impact Measurement, on the Executive Committee for IEEE Humanitarian Activities Committee, she served as Vice Chair, Internet Inclusion for the IEEE Internet Initiative. Mei Lin is Singaporean, living for decades in Silicon Valley working at Intel then Oracle. Starting work as a software programmer at Shell Australia, with Maya Bundt of Swiss Re, her path led in 2016-2018 to WEF’s Global Future Council on Digital Economy and Society. With BSc in Math from ANU, MBA from MIT where she studied under, she cofounded the @GlobalHelpDesk with Nicole Patrice deMember connecting Tech communities with ITU,UNDP, World Bank and WEF to respond practically to 1.6 billion children who have been pandemic-disrupted.
Amanda Niklaus
PPA Transaction Manager at Pexapark
Amanda Niklaus
PPA Transaction Manager at Pexapark
Amanda has 6 years of experience as an energy consultant, energy analyst and economist with expertise in power markets and trading strategies for new energy types in Australia. Amanda provided power market and energy risk management training to over 800 energy stakeholders throughout Europe, Australia and Asia.
Since joining Pexapark in January 2019, Amanda has developed the research product line at Pexapark and led a variety of PPA negotiations across Europe.
Prior to joining Pexapark, Amanda worked for the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) in its operational team providing advice across a range of power market issues to both public and private stakeholders.
Lucy Craig
Vice President and Director of Technology and Innovation at DNV GL Energy
Lucy Craig
Vice President and Director of Technology and Innovation at DNV GL Energy
Lucy Craig is Vice President and Director of Technology and Innovation at DNV GL Energy, where she is responsible for digitalization, innovation and technical governance across service areas covering renewables advisory and certification, transmission and distribution advisory services, energy markets and energy management. She manages DNV GL Energy’s strategic growth segments including offshore wind, energy digitalization, energy storage and solar. A top priority for Lucy is supporting DNV GL’s customers in accelerating the Energy Transition.
DNV GL delivers world-renowned testing and advisory services to the energy value chain including renewables and energy management. Our expertise spans onshore and offshore wind power, solar, conventional generation, transmission and distribution, smart grids, and sustainable energy use, as well as energy markets and regulations. Our experts support customers around the globe in delivering a safe, reliable, efficient, and sustainable energy supply.
Prior to her current role, Lucy managed the region of Iberia and Latin America for DNV GL in Renewables Advisory. Lucy has 30 years’ experience in the renewables industry. She has a PhD in electrical power engineering and is a Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology.
Ms. Tarveen Kaur
Head of Client Communication, Cutting Edge India
Ms. Tarveen Kaur
Head of Client Communication, Cutting Edge India
Tarveen earned her Master’s Degree in Political Science from Punjab University, Chandigarh and started her training and development career with some of the leading multinational companies in the National Capital Region. During this time she gained rich experience as a Soft Skills trainer and then later as a Training and Development Manager.
In the UK, Tarveen worked in real estate sales for Atlas International, a major international real estate company. During her tenure at Atlas International, she was adjudged as the Top Sales Performer on several occasions.
Tarveen is a certified NLP Practitioner from the UK and also has a Certificate in Personal Performance Coaching from the Coaching Academy London. Tarveen has delivered several motivational talks and conducted workshops for a wide variety of clients ranging from MNCs to business schools, GNA University, Daviet Ct. group of colleges, Punjab Cooperative Banks are the few names.
Achievements
2019-Recently awarded as a Woman achiever from the punjab region
2018- Got Mrs. India Confident award and was finalist for Mrs India 2018
2018- Got Leadership Excellence award at 5th Leadership conclave held at New Delhi.
Ms. Lisa Mohanty
Product Leader, Amazon
Ms. Lisa Mohanty
Product Leader, Amazon
Lisa Mohanty is one of the product leaders behind Amazon’s Echo (the voice-controlled speaker) and Alexa (the digital assistant), innovations that have changed the way we interact with the world around us. She has 12+ years of deep technical and UX experience, building and driving growth of brand new and established products in AI, Semiconductor and the IT industry. Lisa graduated with an MBA from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and holds a degree in Computer Engineering from Amrita School of Engineering, Coimbatore.
Mr. Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan
Senior Technical Program Manager, Amazon | Global Chair, IEEE SIGHT
Mr. Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan
Senior Technical Program Manager, Amazon | Global Chair, IEEE SIGHT
Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan, a globally renowned technologist best known for his technological innovations in addressing global humanitarian and sustainable development challenges. Currently, he serves as the global chairman of the IEEE Special Interest Group on Humanitarian Technology (SIGHT) managing the portfolio of sustainable development programs globally. He is also the incoming global chair for the 2021 IEEE Humanitarian Activities Committee (HAC). He serves as an expert in the Broadband commission working group on school connectivity that is co-chaired by UNESCO, UNICEF and ITU to drive “GIGA’, a Global School Connectivity Initiative. He is the founder and president of the technology-based humanitarian program “The Brahmam”, that aims to deliver next generation social innovations to achieve sustainable development goals and benefit the marginalized communities globally. He received his B.E. degree in Computer Science and Engineering (2005) from Anna University, India, and M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Tufts University, USA (2010).
Throughout his career, he spearheaded cutting-edge technology development programs in the areas of Artificial Intelligence, computer vision, spoken language technology, cloud computing, information systems, assistive technologies and sustainable technologies. For over a decade, he delivered technology-driven sustainable development programs that brought together the engineering communities, non-profit organizations, governmental agencies and disability advocacy groups to improve the living conditions of children with disabilities and impoverished women and students in developing nations.
He is accredited with numerous global awards for his leadership contributions and innovations in leading technology-based humanitarian programs. Most recently, IEEE honored him with the 2020 IEEE Theodore W.Hissey Outstanding Young Professional Award “for inspiring leadership, exemplary innovations, and pioneering contributions to addressing global challenges through technology-driven IEEE humanitarian programs."
Ms. Pratima Joshi
Co-Founder and Executive Director, Shelter Associates
Ms. Pratima Joshi
Co-Founder and Executive Director, Shelter Associates
Pratima has worked in the area of sustainable low-cost housing and sanitation for the urban poor for over 26 years. Using concepts like multi-stakeholder consultation, user-centered design and participative governance long before they were fashionable, her approach has evolved to include the following principles:
- Understanding the true situation before making plans—collect data and speak with all involved parties
- Designing spaces, whether building for the poor or toilets, must account for habits and ambitions of residents/users, rather than aiming for the lowest cost solution—this means engaging the final users rather than thrusting a well-meaning solution upon them
- Managing infrastructure is more important than building it—hence, accountability and management systems must be put in place from the start, not as after-thought
A recipient of Aga Khan scholarship, and an expert in ‘Building Design for Developing Countries’, through her Masters-in-Architecture from London based Bartlett School of Architecture and Planning, Pratima who co-founded the NGO- Shelter Associates in 1993, has impacted over 3,70,000 people by providing safe sanitation through community and individual household sanitation. The data driven, community centric and cost sharing model, ‘One Home One Toilet’ (OHOT) has led to over 21000 household toilets being facilitated directly in slums of Maharashtra in the cities of Pune, Kolhapur, Thane, Navi-Mumbai, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Sangli and Panvel (updated October 2020). Their social housing efforts in the cities of Pune and Sangli-Miraj has impacted over 8400 people and they continue to engage in slum rehab projects in the city of Kolhapur.
In December 2009, Google Earth recognized her efficient use of Google Earth technology towards poverty mapping, and thus acknowledged her as 'Google Earth Hero', which made her the only Indian to receive ‘Google Earth Hero Award’ and she has also been identified by BBC as a leading ‘Slum architect of India’.
In the last 6 years, she has won many awards including, LPC Honour Award at the UN Convention 2020, ‘NASSCOM Social Innovation Forum 2017’, award, recognized as a Social Entrepreneur by Ashoka Fellowship, India Sanitation Coalition- FICCI’s special recognition for innovative use of data for delivery of sanitation, ‘Amazing Indian’ by Times Now and the HUDCO award for sanitation solutions jointly with the Pune municipal corporation, to name a few.
Pratima speaks and presents her work extensively across the world at universities, to governments and other social sector organizations, including policy discussions and advisory role in government programs such as the Rajiv Awas Yojna (RAY). She has been a vocal advocate of OHOT model on various national and international platforms.
Track 2 Educate & Empower - Returning Mothers Speakers
Ms. Anupama Dalmia
Writer, Serial Entrepreneur & Social Influencer
Ms. Anupama Dalmia
Writer, Serial Entrepreneur & Social Influencer
Anupama Dalmia is a multiple award winning blogger, author, serial entrepreneur with three ventures, social influencer, creative writing mentor, choreographer and mother to a 5-year-old. She is a Karamveer Chakra (Silver) awardee which is a Global Civilian Honour presented by International Confederation of NGOs in association with the United Nations. She is a Sheroes Champion where she motivates a community of 15 million women and is also an Amazon approved Influencer. She has been featured among the top bloggers and influencers of India on multiple platforms and her entrepreneurial journey has been covered by coveted media like Official Humans of Hyderabad, The New Indian Express, The Better India and YourStory. She is the only Indian who has been nominated in the category of "Digital Transformation" by Global Digital Women which is a Berlin based International network of female digital pioneers at the Digital Women Leader Awards 2020. Recently, she was conferred with the Sarojini Naidu International Award for Women 2020 for her contribution in the field of writing, social work and entrepreneurship. Her literary works have been published in leading magazines, platforms and newspapers of India. She has also contributed to International Literary Journals and her poems, blogs and fictional stories have been widely appreciated.
Mrs. Zarghoona Jalalzoy
Senior Advisor on E-GOV and Risk communication to Minister of Public Health
Mrs. Zarghoona Jalalzoy
Senior Advisor on E-GOV and Risk communication to Minister of Public Health
My name is Zarghoona Jalalzoy ,I am from Afghanistan ,I have Studied Electrical and Electronic Engineering and My Master degree is in the Public administration and Management ,i have worked for 5 years with (Roshan TDCA) telecom company for 5 years as Manager in the network ,then i joined other telecom company Etisalat Afghanistan and i have worked as Senior Manager in Quality Assurance and Network quality for 8 years .Then I moved to government and joined Afghanistan Regulatory Authority (ATRA) as a senior directorate position for 5 years ,from 4 months I am working as Senior E-gov and Risk communication advisor to the Minister of Public Health.I have lots experience in technology, Management, Quality Assurance, Project Management and E-gov.
Mrs Deepshikha
HR specialist, Author, Motivational Speaker
Mrs Deepshikha
HR specialist, Author, Motivational Speaker
Having her command over lifeskills and employability skills, Deepshikha
has conducted various workshops for Shiv Nadar school, Wipro, CII, Barclays, Ghaziabad, NIET and MSME under the aegis of Government of India. Being a certified Goodreads author, the foreword of her book ‘A pinch of life--Sweet and Sour’; is written by Mr. Shatrughan Sinha. She has also delivered a TEDX talk on ‘Dyslexia to Distinction’ as she overcame her dyslexia and became an author.
Ms Sunitha Mannatil
Practicing Life Coach & IT Leader
Ms Sunitha Mannatil
Practicing Life Coach & IT Leader
- Technology Leader - Commercial Assets Manager, APAC at Diageo Singapore
- Pursuing ACTP Life coaching certification from ICF
- I help individuals create power personal transformation and live life filled with purpose and meaning
- I help create powerful personal brands
- Mother of 2 daughters, Budding entrepreneur, Photography enthusiast
- Love to travel, read and indulge in literature
Ms. Priti Sanghavi
Ex-banker, Yoga Instructor, Certified Life Coach & NLP practitioner
Ms. Priti Sanghavi
Ex-banker, Yoga Instructor, Certified Life Coach & NLP practitioner
- Ex-banker with international experience
- Full time Yoga instructor
- Associate certified coach (ACC) from ICF
- Certified neuro linguistic practitioner (NLP)
- Founder of Global Learning platform for Women
- Mother of two pursuing their dream education
- Volunteer with FOM and MINDS Singapore
- Loves travel and music
Mrs. Sally Musonye
Electrical Engineer, Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC)
Mrs. Sally Musonye
Electrical Engineer, Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC)
Sally Musonye is an Electrical Engineer at the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) and past chair for Women in Engineering Kenya.
Sally holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from The University of Nairobi (UoN). She is a qualified and registered engineer with the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) and The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). She serves as the Treasurer for the Kenya Section, Chairperson for the Power and Energy Society (PES), Publicity regional rep (Africa) for YESIST12, and Region 8 (Africa) co-coordinator for the Students’ Virtual Speakers Bureau. She is a recipient of the KPLC Excellence Award for outstanding performance and the Kenya Section Women in Engineering (WiE) Achievement Award.
She has been a speaker, organizer and facilitator in local and global conferences on Power, Energy, Leadership, and Strategic Plan development within IEEE and beyond. She is actively involved in mentorship, women empowerment, and community development through her representation as the founder of AshGold Africa.
Recently, she published a strategic paper on The Perceived Role of Innovation in Operationalizing Decentralization of Organizational Operations in Utility Companies: Case Study of Kenya Power.
This year, she is a finalist in the YALI East Africa -Young Women in African Power Leadership Program by Power Africa and USAID among over 500 applicants in Eastern and Central Africa. She is implementing a HAC/SIGHT funded project, ElimuSafe, that seeks to provide foot-operated hand washing stations to a school in rural Kenya as a mitigation measure against COVID-19.
Ms. Neeraja Ganesh
Director – Relationships at National Education Society of Karnataka
Ms. Neeraja Ganesh
Director – Relationships at National Education Society of Karnataka
Neeraja Ganesh is the Director – Relationships at National Education Society of Karnataka, which has 17 institutions under it, National College being one of them, where she works closely with the industry veterans to build the industry academia connect. Her focus is to ensure the curriculum of the institutions is relevant to the current and future industry needs. She is also a freelance consultant, who conducts various training programs and workshops on leadership and behaviours. She also coaches people to progress in their careers.
Prior to this role, Neeraja Ganesh’s professional experience of 25 years has been in the Information Technology industry managing large teams, delivery of IT projects, Operational excellence and customer delight for large banking captives.
She has mentored and coached new leaders, first time leaders to understand their leadership style, and utilise their strengths to grow themselves and their teams. She has a very strong inclination to get the women of our country have a positive mindset, become confident and go all out to reach their potential. With this intent, she has driven Diversity and Inclusion programs in her organisations and also, volunteered and mentored outside her organisations to support this cause.
She decided to switch her career to work in the space of gender diversity after having mentored women from diverse experiences, age groups, industries and domains, to help them grow in their careers. She was heading the JobsForHer Foundation which was been setup to bridge the gender gaps in the country.
She has been invited by various forums across India to deliver talks on a variety of topics with the intent to inspire, educate and transform mindsets of the audiences. Her sessions on “Networking for Results”, “Personal Branding”, “Work Life Integration”, “Women and the Glass Ceiling” have been extremely well received every time she has delivered it, especially to an audience of women. In a pursuit to reach larger audiences, she has started writing articles and has also been featured via chat shows and podcasts to understand her leadership mantra which has helped her, her teams, and the organisations that she has worked with reach their goals. She has also been invited to review books of leading authors, one of them being Ms. Apurva Purohit(President Jagran Prakashan)’s book titled “Lady You’re the Boss”. She has also been on the jury panel for many “Innovation” Competitions including the MIT Sloan School of Management, USA’s Inclusive Innovation Challenge.
She was awarded at a TEDx Women event organised by the Dayananda Sagar Institutions for her 25 years of achievements in the corporate world in 2017. She also received the JobsForHer HerRising award in the Women Professionals category in 2019 for her contributions to the work of gender diversity, helping bridge the gender gap in the country. She also received the Women’s Web Orange Flower Award for Writing on Women at Work.
She volunteers as a mentor at JobsForHer and Aspire for Her foundation. She is a core team volunteer at Hope works foundation. She is also part of the Women Leadership and Expert Empowerment committee at Bangalore Chamber of Industries and Commerce.
Prof. Carolyn McGregor AM
Co-Director and Founder of the Joint Research Centre, AI for Health and Wellness
Prof. Carolyn McGregor AM
Co-Director and Founder of the Joint Research Centre, AI for Health and Wellness
Professor Carolyn McGregor AM is the Research Chair in Artificial Intelligence for Health and Wellness and a two-time Canada Research Chair in Health Informatics based at Ontario Tech University. She is the co-Director and Founder of the Joint Research Centre in Artificial Intelligence for Health and Wellness between Ontario Tech University and University of Technology, Sydney. Dr McGregor AM has led pioneering research in Big Data analytics, artificial intelligence, deep learning, internet of things, temporal data mining and cloud computing. She now progresses this research within the context of critical care medicine, precision public health, mental health, astronaut health and military and civilian tactical training. She is the inventor and lead on two international award-winning AI driven Big Data analytics platforms for health and wellness, Artemis and Athena.
She has over 180 refereed publications, 3 patents in multiple jurisdictions and has established two startup companies resulting from her research. In 2014 she was awarded membership in the Order of Australia for her significant service to science and innovation through health care information systems. In 2017 she was featured in the 150 Stories series commissioned by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario and the Government of Canada to commemorate the 150th year anniversary of Ontario. In 2018 she was named as a Women Leader in Digital Health by Digital Health Canada.
Professor McGregor has many years of service to IEEE EMBS and LSTC. She was the Founding Chair of the NSW EMBS Chapter in Australia before moving in 2007 to Canada to take up my Canada Research Chair appointment. She was the Canadian representative for the EMBS for 2009-14 and was the inaugural IEEE EMBS WiE liaison commencing that role in 2009. She was appointed in 2015 to serve as an EMBS representative within the IEEE Life Sciences Technical Community (LSTC). She served as Chair of LSTC for 2016-17 and have been Past Chair in 2018-19. In 2020 she is the EMBS VP Elect Member and Student Activities and will become the EMBS VP Member and Student Activities for 2021-22.
She is the mother and primary carer of two teenage children.
Track 3 Encourage & Engage - Industry Forum Speakers
Marina Dabić
Professor, University of Zagreb
Marina Dabić
Professor, University of Zagreb
Prof Marina Dabić (Master, M.Sc., PhD University of Zagreb, Faculty of Economics and Business, Croatia) in 1983, 1989 and 2000 respectively She is a full Professor of Entrepreneurship and International Business at University of Zagreb, Faculty of Economics & Business, Croatia and Nottingham Business School, NTU, UK. Her research has appeared top tier academic journals such as Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of World Business, Journal of Business Research, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, International Business Review, International Journal of Human Resource Management IEEE-TEM, Organizational Dynamics among many others.
Prof Dabić is associate editor of the IEEE- Transaction of Engineering Management, Technology in Society, and Technological Forecasting and Social Change. In 2016, she co-authored a monograph entitled Entrepreneurial University in Innovation Seeking Countries Challenges and Opportunities (MacMillan Palgrave, USA). In 2019, she was editor of the book R&D Management in the Knowledge Era Challenges of Emerging Technologies, published by Springer.
Prof Dabić is a member of the board of governors for the IEEE-TEMS and its representative in the
IEEE- WIE.
Ms. Preksha Kaparwan
#EMERGE50 winner | Simplifying Technology Through Stories | Making Data Accessible with Alphaa AI = Google for your Data Warehouse
Ms. Preksha Kaparwan
#EMERGE50 winner | Simplifying Technology Through Stories | Making Data Accessible with Alphaa AI = Google for your Data Warehouse
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Ms. Miri Rodriguez
Global head of internships, Microsoft
Ms. Miri Rodriguez
Global head of internships, Microsoft
Miri Rodriguez is a globally recognized Storyteller, Head of Global Internship Program at Microsoft and author of Brand Storytelling. She is a creative journalist and content strategist, evangelizing brand narrative and showcasing how thought leaders can leverage storytelling techniques for culture activation and influence in the digital age. Miri has earned several awards in digital marketing and customer experience and is ranked as top in-demand speaker at leading industry conferences around the world. Miri brings 15+ years of expertise, valuable industry and consulting insights matched with a lighthearted and connected delivery approach. Her social advocacy and philanthropic work include volunteering to train social enterprise leaders in Africa, coaching students at Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship in the U.S., and mentoring men and women to build their personal brand with empathy, passion and purpose. Her biggest accomplishment to date is being a mother of 2 boys and an American Bulldog. She can also run in heels. Ice cream is her superfood.
Ms. Leanne Robers
Co-Founder She Loves Tech | Public Speaker | Entrepreneur | Psychotherapist | Advisor | Angel Investor | Obama Leader | Microsoft Regional Director
Ms. Leanne Robers
Co-Founder She Loves Tech | Public Speaker | Entrepreneur | Psychotherapist | Advisor | Angel Investor | Obama Leader | Microsoft Regional Director
Networking Tour with IEEE Leaders”?
Prof. Bozenna Pasik-Duncan
Professor at The University of Kansas
Prof. Bozenna Pasik-Duncan
Professor at The University of Kansas
She received Master's degree in Mathematics from University of Warsaw, Ph.D. and D.Sc. (habilitation doctorate) degrees from Warsaw School of Economics (SGH) in Poland. Before moving to University of Kansas (KU) in 1984, she was faculty member of Department of Mathematics at SGH. At KU she is Professor of Mathematics, Courtesy Professor of EECS and AE, ITTC Investigator, CBC affiliate, Chancellors Club Teaching Professor, and KU Women's Hall of Fame inductee. She is Life Fellow of IEEE, Fellow of International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC), and Fellow of Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM). She is a recipient of the IEEE Third Millennium Medal and IEEE Control Systems Society (CSS) Distinguished Member Award. She has served in many capacities in several societies including IEEE CSS Vice President, Polish Mathematical Society (PTM) - Warsaw Branch Vice President, IEEE Society on Social Implications of Technology (SSIT) Board of Governors member, Program Director of Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) Activity Group on Control and Systems Theory (CST), Chair of IEEE CSS Technical Committee on Control Education and IEEE CSS Board of Governors Member, Chair of American Automatic Control Council (AACC) Education Committee, member of IFAC Technical Board, Chair of IFAC Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion, Immediate Past Chair of IEEE WIE Committee, co-founder of IEEE CSS Standing Committee on Women in Control (WIC) and its first Chair, member of IEEE Computer Society (CS) History Committee, member of Award Boards of IFAC and AWM, founder and faculty advisor of AWM and SIAM Student Chapters at KU, founder and coordinator of Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month (MSAM)/ Outreach Program at KU, and founder and Chair of Stochastic Adaptive Control Seminar at KU. She is an Associate Editor of several Journals, and author and co-author of over 200 technical papers and book chapters. Her research is interdisciplinary and primarily in stochastic adaptive control, data analysis and modeling, and in STEM education. She is a recipient of many awards including IREX Fellow, NSF Career Advancement, KU Women of Distinction, Kemper Fellow, IFAC Outstanding Service, Steeples Service to Kansans, H.O.P.E. , AWM L. Hay, Morrison, Max Wells, B. Price, Polish Ministry of Higher Education and Science, and IEEE EAB Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing Education. Her hobbies are music, art, poetry and traveling. She has visited 55 countries. She is passionate about teaching and helping others. Her husband, Tyrone Duncan, IEEE Life Fellow is an EE, and professor of mathematics; her daughter, Dominique Duncan, IEEE SM is an EE, mathematician, and assistant professor of neurology and bioengineering.
Nita Patel
Sr. Director, Engineering
Nita Patel
Sr. Director, Engineering
Nita Patel, P.E., is the Senior Director, Engineering at L3Harris Technologies responsible for design and development of advanced electro-optical systems. Nita has been an active IEEE volunteer for over 20 years. She is a Director of the IEEE Foundation and, in the past, the founder of the IEEE Women in Engineering International Leadership Conference (WIE ILC), Women in Engineering International Chair, 1st VP of the Computer Society, member of the Computer Society Board of Governors, member of the Eta Kappa Nu Board of Governors and 2010-12 IEEE-USA VP of Communications & Public Awareness. Outside of IEEE, she is active volunteer with Toastmasters International and a senior director with the United States Chess Federation. Nita was named the 2014 L3 Engineer of the Year and the 2011 New Hampshire Engineer of the Year award for her technical contributions to the engineering profession. Nita received her MS Computer Engineering (1998), BS Electrical Engineering (1995) and BS Mathematics (1995) from Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
Jenifer Castillo
Territory Manager of the Caribbean, Parker Hannifin Corp.
Jenifer Castillo
Territory Manager of the Caribbean, Parker Hannifin Corp.
Recognized with the IEEE MGA Achievement Award 2020, “For sustained and outstanding achievements in promoting Students, YP, and WIE membership development in Latin America and the Caribbean”, and the Oscar C. Fernández, IEEE Region 9 recognition to the outstanding volunteer in LatinAmerica.
Takako Hashimoto
Vice President, and Director, Institute of Economics at Chiba University of Commerce
Takako Hashimoto
Vice President, and Director, Institute of Economics at Chiba University of Commerce
Takako Hashimoto graduated from the Ochanomizu University, and received a Ph.D. in computer science, specialization in multimedia information processing, from the Graduate School of Systems and Information Engineering of University of Tsukuba in 2005. She worked at the software R and D center of Ricoh Co. Ltd., in Japan for 24 years, and participated in the development of many software products as a technical leader. She has a rich project management experience including international collaborative research handling as well. From April of 2009, she was involved in Chiba University of Commerce as Associate Professor. In 2015, she has become Professor of Chiba University of Commerce. In 2015, she stayed at University of California, Los Angeles as a visiting researcher. She has become Director of Institute of Economic Research, Chiba University of Commerce in 2016 and the Vice President of Chiba University of Commerce in 2018. She is served as a Board Member of the Database Society of Japan and IEEE Japan Council. She got the 2019 MGA Larry K. Wilson Transnational Award, one of the most prestigious awards in IEEE. She has focused on the data mining research and the social media analysis, especially topic extraction from millions of tweets related to the East Japan Great Earthquake. She is developing the topic extraction technique for big data. She’s also conducting global researches for achieving SDGs in diverse environment.
In 2019, she received the 2019 MGA Larry K. Wilson Transnational Award , one of the most prestigious awards in IEEE. Fellow of the Information Processing Society of Japan.
Ms. Emi Yano
IEEE Region 10 Women in Engineering Committee Chair 2019-2022
Ms. Emi Yano
IEEE Region 10 Women in Engineering Committee Chair 2019-2022
Emi Yano graduated from the Graduate School of Science and Engineering at Chuo University, Tokyo, Japan. She specialized in Kansei Engineering (Affective Engineering); human friendly information processing technologies for suiting diversity of user’s cognitive and behavioral responses.
Before assuming her current position, she worked in an information integration company as a Web Usability Engineer and has accumulated several years' experience in web consulting using the Human-Centered Design and Design Thinking process.
In 2009, she moved to Ricoh IT Solutions. Currently, she is focusing on personal training for engineers and improving communication between people in the workplace through effective leadership and organizational development in the HR department.
She also has been a very active volunteer leader in IEEE since 2008. She was the Chair 2016-2017 of IEEE Japan Council Women in Engineering and she is currently the Chair of Region 10 (Asia-Pacific) Women in Engineering Committee. Through IEEE WIE activities, she connects people and bring them a big smile!
Ms. Maheshi B. Dissanayake
Chair Elect, IEEE Sri Lanka Section
Ms. Maheshi B. Dissanayake
Chair Elect, IEEE Sri Lanka Section
Dr. Maheshi Buddhinee Dissanayake received the B.Sc. Engineering degree with First Class Honours in electrical and electronic engineering from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, in 2006, and the Ph.D. in electronic engineering from the University of Surrey, U.K., in 2010. Since 2013, she has been a Senior Lecturer with the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya. She has been a visiting research fellow at King's College London, UK, from 2015 to 2017. She has served as an organising committee member and TPC Member of many IEEE conferences, and as a reviewer in IEEE journals in the area of Molecular communication and image processing. Dr. Maheshi is a Senior Member of IEEE and at present she is a member of R10 WIE committee, Chair Elect of IEEE Sri Lanka Section, member of IEEE HAC Communications Committee, and Chair of IEEE WIE Sri Lanka section. Her research interests include error correction codes, robust video communication, molecular communication, machine learning, and biomedical image analysis.
Ms. Line Sidawi
Vice-Chair, IEEE YP Lebanon Section
Ms. Line Sidawi
Vice-Chair, IEEE YP Lebanon Section
Line joined IEEE in 2014 where she led many positions on a national and global levels. She was recognized by IEEE Lebanon Section as the most active young professional in 2017. Line earned the BSc and MSc degrees both in Electrical Engineering from the University of Balamand in 2015 and 2018, respectively. The emphasis in her graduate studies was on Power and Control systems. Line works as a technical sales engineer where she manages sustainable sales success in a broad customer base (Saudi, Bahrain, and Lebanon).
WePOWER Panel Discussion
Social Entrepreneurship for Women
Ms. Janati Nakimera
CEO | Solar Net metering Uganda & 2019-2020 Social Impact Liaison
Ms. Janati Nakimera
CEO | Solar Net metering Uganda & 2019-2020 Social Impact Liaison
Janati Nakimera is a steering committee member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Uganda Section, and a student pursuing a Master’s degree in power systems engineering of Makerere University, Kampala. Under the IEEE, she serves as treasurer and is also in charge of industrial relations in Makerere University IEEE Student Branch. Her role is to enable students to get access to opportunities in the industry that can be of benefit to them.
Janati is also co-founder and CEO of Solar Net metering Uganda, a solar energy startup company for rural Uganda. The team led by herself has participated in the Global Sustainable Technology and Innovation Conference (GSTIC) held in Brussels in the month of November 2018 where she was a youth speaker. Solar Net metering Uganda became an IEEE N3XT® Star at G-STIC 2018.
Janati is an IEEE Volunteer in Leadership Training (VOLT) 2018 graduate. Janati is also active in local IEEE activities of the IEEE Power & Energy Society, IEEE R8 Young Professionals, and IEEE Women in Engineering. She embraces diversity and envisions a violence-free world where the majority of men and women are educated and can actively participate in building their communities in all sectors. Janati is a Social Impact Liaison on the 2020 IEEE Entrepreneurship Steering Committee.
Ms. Starlene Sharma
Cofounder and Managing Partner at Green Artha
Ms. Starlene Sharma
Cofounder and Managing Partner at Green Artha
Starlene Sharma is cofounder and managing partner at Green Artha, a climate innovation and investment firm. She is also the founder of the Cleantech Women’s Innovation Network and Climate Editor for Business India Publications. As the Founding CEO of AIC Sangam Innovation Foundation, she was responsible for establishing India’s first dedicated cleantech incubator and accelerator, while simultaneously leading in early-stage cleantech investment at Sangam Ventures. Starlene has been part of the founding leadership of two tech-for-development startups in India and scaled Orphans International/Better Future International to seven countries, earning partnership with UNDP and receiving awards from several national governments. She started her career at Landmark Advisors, a New York hedge fund that she helped grow from $80mn to $880mn.
Ms. Geetanjali Tripathi
AGM- HOG (Unnati and Club Enerji)-Social Innovation Group | Tata Power-Delhi Distribution Limited
Ms. Geetanjali Tripathi
AGM- HOG (Unnati and Club Enerji)-Social Innovation Group | Tata Power-Delhi Distribution Limited
Ms. Geetanjali Tripathi is an IT graduate and completed her Master’s degree in Rural Management. She is a dedicated and proactive Social development Professional with more than 15 years of experience. She is associated with TATA Power-Delhi Distribution Limited from more than 12 years. She has a vast experience in developing and monitoring programs for Women’s, Youth, children and families residing in JJ / Slum clusters & Villages. She also plays key role in establishing relationships with community in order to introduced Innovative ideas.
Her Functional Key Strength Areas are Leadership, Women Empowerment, Skill Development, Entrepreneurship Development & Collaboration.
Hira Wajahat Malik
Sustainability | Energy & Climate | Start-Ups | Social Impact | Creating Shared Value
Hira Wajahat Malik
Sustainability | Energy & Climate | Start-Ups | Social Impact | Creating Shared Value
Leading the Programmes & Projects team at Stimulus with a focus on sustainability, clean-tech and innovation, Hira Wajahat is the Pakistan National Lead for ClimateLaunchpad, a global green business ideas competition. She is also actively engaged as a business mentor and coach, consulting with and facilitating trainings for start-ups and new business ventures. Hira is passionate about developing the social and climate impact entrepreneurial eco-system in Pakistan. For this reason, she has founded CleanTech Republik, a community network that supports product development and implementation of services having a positive social and environmental impact.
Over the last 10 years, Hira has had the opportunity to work with an array of organizations across various industries: energy, FMCGs, pharma, agribusiness, healthcare, education, media & NGOs/NPOs. She has also been involved in the initiation of two entrepreneurial ventures that are running successfully. Her simultaneous exposure to corporate, government, education and development sectors has led her to believe in the importance of systems thinking and benefits of partnerships for value addition.
Currently, Hira is also engaged as adjunct faculty at SZABIST, Karachi, teaching the courses "Sustainability and Technology", "Introduction to Entrepreneurship & SMEs", “Technopreneurship” & “Product Innovation and Design” to undergraduate students.
Mr. Sohel Ahmed
Managing Director, Grameen Shakti, Bangladesh
Mr. Sohel Ahmed
Managing Director, Grameen Shakti, Bangladesh
Sohel Ahmed (Managing Director, Grameen Shakti) looks after the overall activities of the company that includes from policy to operational aspects. Grameen Shakti (GS) is one of the leading social business in
the world, founded by Nobel laureate Prof. Mohammad Yunus, with an aim of improving “Access to Energy”. Sohel has more than a decade of experience of working in the field of Renewable Energy, have expertise of modeling and managing large development projects in coordination with International agencies, along with monitoring, evaluation and impact assessment of the same, as well as investment planning and advocacy on renewable energy and social business. Sohel is also spearheading “Consultancy & Knowledge Practice” cell in GS, which was established to institutionalize the experience and expertise acquired over the years. This cell is responsible to collaborate with local and international institutions and agencies to conceive and implement different social projects. “Consultancy & Knowledge” cell is currently implementing various development projects, notable among them are (a) peer-to-peer solar electricity trading (UN DESA) (b) Eco-village Development (Danish Project) (c) WePOWER (World Bank) (d) Energy Transition (network of 10 countries) etc. He is also participating in different forums/workshop/seminar as a resource person for sometimes, that includes sessions organized by UN, World Bank, ADB etc.
Dr. Rashi Gupta
Founder and Managing Director of M/s Vision Mechatronics Private Ltd
Dr. Rashi Gupta
Founder and Managing Director of M/s Vision Mechatronics Private Ltd
Dr. Rashi Gupta, fondly known as “Batterywali of India”, is the pioneer of manufacturing of Advanced Lithium Batteries in India. She is the founder and Managing Director of M/s Vision Mechatronics Private Ltd, leading it towards a name to reckon for in the field of Robotics, Renewable Energy & Energy Storage. She’s been fearless & ferocious in making a name for herself & the company in a market filled with Goliaths. Under her able leadership India got the “Worlds Smartest Lithium Battery” and introduced “Active Balancing of Batteries in India”
If one takes a closer look at the alchemy of this achiever, two distinct virtues pop up, besides perseverance & hard work. These are: pioneering spirit & willingness. Coupled with an impressive background, it was not therefore surprising that she became a prominent name in the Renewable Energy Sector of India.
She holds degrees of BE, MBA, LLM, & PhD to her title. She is a committee member of Bureau of Indian Standards for Batteries(ETD-11), Energy Storage(ETD-52) and E-Mobility(ETD-51). She is also Member of International ElectroTechnical Commission(IEC TC120). She is also a committee member of National Energy Storage Committee- FICCI, Vice Chair-India CBC, Chairperson-Womens India CBC. She firmly believes in gender equality and works on global forums for women empowerment.
She has been a admired speaker on various forums like Intersolar India, REI Expo, WFES, The Ceo Conclave,Municipalika, The Smarter E, to name a few.
SheFirst Contest - Panelist
Encourage & Engage Track
Dr. Abhishek Appaji
Institutional Coordinator for R&D and Assistant Professor at B.M.S. College of Engineering & Winner of Class 5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Global Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
Dr. Abhishek Appaji
Institutional Coordinator for R&D and Assistant Professor at B.M.S. College of Engineering & Winner of Class 5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Global Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
Dr. Abhishek Appaji is working as Institutional Coordinator for R&D and Assistant Professor at B.M.S. College of Engineering, Bangalore. He is also serving as Guest faculty at Maastricht University, the Netherlands. He is a graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology Global Entrepreneurship Bootcamp specialized in new ventures leadership. He obtained his Bachelor of Engineering in Medical Electronics with University Rank from BMSCE, Masters of Technology in Information Technology, and a Masters of Engineering (M.E) in Bioinformatics from University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering, Bangalore. His Ph.D. was in Mental Health and Neurosciences from Maastricht University, the Netherlands. Abhishek is a Senior Member of IEEE. He was the Chair of the IEEE Young Professionals Bangalore Section during 2017 and 2018. Currently, he is the Joint Treasurer and SIGHT Chair of the IEEE Bangalore Section from 2019, Treasurer of IEEE TEMS Bangalore Chapter and YP lead of India, Webmaster, and MD Chair for IEEE PES Bangalore Chapter and advisor for IEEE EMB BMSCE Chapter. Abhishek has received various grants from Indian agencies like DST, DBT, BIRAC, and from abroad. Abhishek has also worked as a research associate in the Centre for Nanoscience and Engineering (CeNSE), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore. He has two patents filed in Medtech Space. He has more than 50 International/National journal publications and conferences to his credit. He has been a part of more than 100+ Invited expert talks in various conferences, Forums, and events. He has renowned laurels including IEEE International Best paper Award in Malaysia, MGH CamTech Jugadathon Awards, Best Nodal Coordinator award, Gandhian Young Technological Innovation Award 2016 at Rastrapathy Bhavan (President of India House) New Delhi, Elderly care Hackathon (the Netherlands), Winner of Class 5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Global Entrepreneurship Bootcamp, IEEE MGA Young Professional Achievement Award, R10 YP achievement award, etc.
Mr. Ravikiran Annaswamy
CEO and CoFounder at Numocity Technologies, EV Charger CMS, EV Battery Swap and Actionable Intelligence Platform, IOT Analytics
Mr. Ravikiran Annaswamy
CEO and CoFounder at Numocity Technologies, EV Charger CMS, EV Battery Swap and Actionable Intelligence Platform, IOT Analytics
Ravikiran Annaswamy is the Co-founder and CEO of Numocity Technologies. He is very passionate about clean mobility and is working towards accelerating Electric Mobility in India and world market. His strategy is on using IOT, Analytics and Deep Learning to accelerate adoption of Electric vehicles and innovate through new business models of Energy as a service.
He has over 25 years of experience; as an Entrepreneur and as a business leader at Nokia Siemens Networks and Siemens AG. He was instrumental in launching and scaling, frugal and innovative solutions like Mobile Prepaid, Data Charging, and various VAS solutions in India and global markets. He championed Intrapreneurship by working as the Innovation head for Bangalore site of Nokia Siemens Networks.
He is a serial entrepreneur and passionate to incubate new Start-ups. He was the Co-founder of Deccan Institute of Innovation and Design, Co-Director at Founder Institute (Fi.com) Bangalore, Mentor at NUMA Bangalore and mentor and coach for many early stage start-ups. He is also a charter member of TiE Bangalore
He is on the global leadership team of IEEE 5G and is responsible for the vision and strategy of many future applications and services.
He is also a professional volunteer at IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers). He is currently a global board member and Vice President of Membership and Marketing for IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society. He was the chairman for IEEE Bangalore section and on the board of IEEE Asia Pacific during 2014-17.
He is a thought leader and a speaker at numerous prestigious international business conferences.
He has done his MBA from Indian institute of Management Bangalore and has graduated from UVCE Bangalore (University of Visveswaraya College of Engineering).
He also has a great passion for photography and is a bibliophile
Mr. Ezhilvanan Arunachalam
Founder and Executive Director of VilPower Solutions India Pvt Ltd and Einstein College of Engineering.
Mr. Ezhilvanan Arunachalam
Founder and Executive Director of VilPower Solutions India Pvt Ltd and Einstein College of Engineering.
Mr. Ezhilvanan Arunachalam, Founder and Executive Director of VilPower Solutions India Pvt Ltd and Einstein College of Engineering.
Passionate with students, mentoring and guiding them to be successful. Showcasing the strength of rural people. Passionate in sports and travel
Paper to Product Workshop
Encourage & Engage Track
Mr. Senthil Kumar M
CoFounder, JioVio HealthCare
Mr. Senthil Kumar M
CoFounder, JioVio HealthCare
I am Senthil Kumar M. I hail from Madurai, Tamilnadu-India with a great passion for innovating through technology to solve real life problems. I have innovated in fields like wireless network, defence, maternal healthcare, and safety solutions and filed nearly 10 patents for the same. Though I began my career as an engineer in Samsung | Qualcomm Fortune 500 companies, I realised that I am called to be an entrepreneur. I quit my job to found two tech startups, Geomeo and JioVio, in urban infrastructure and healthcare sector respectively.
I have a vision to build technology enabled self-sustaining communities in my region. I believe that we can achieve this only by bridging the digital divide in the society and by empowering the powerless/vulnerable.
To this end, I actively engage in community empowerment and education initiatives especially among girls and young women through ‘MetooMentor’ ’ a non-profit organisation that mentors young women to innovate through technology. With a handful of dedicated volunteers, I have reached around 1000 girls in Madurai, Tamilnadu. Currently, this community development initiative has evolved into one of the
largest physical ‘Meetup’ community in Tamilnadu.
I have offered guest lectures in more than 80 higher education institutes in India and have been honoured as the top 5 Technology Explorers in India by Nasscom. I have won several ‘hackathons’ at the national and international level. I have represented India in ‘Battlemesh Research Programme in Europe’. At present, I am exploring ‘open source ecosystem’ and actively engaging with it as one of its contributors.
Closing Ceremony Speakers
Susan Kathy Land
IEEE President-Elect and an IEEE Fellow
Susan Kathy Land
IEEE President-Elect and an IEEE Fellow
Ms. Land is IEEE President-Elect, an IEEE Fellow. She has more than 30 years of industry experience in the application of software engineering methodologies, the management of information systems, and leadership of software development teams. She is the author or co-author of a number of texts, papers, webinars all supporting sound software engineering principles and practical application of software process methodologies.
Ms. Land has a long-standing history of service within IEEE. She has served three terms on the IEEE Board of Directors, as the 2018 Vice President of IEEE Technical Activities, as a member of the IEEE-USA Board of Directors (2013, 2016), a member of Region 3 Executive Committee (2016, 2017) and President of the IEEE Computer Society in 2009.
Harish Mysore
Sr. Director-IEEE India Operations
Harish Mysore
Sr. Director-IEEE India Operations
Harish Mysore is the Senior Director of IEEE and Manager IEEE’s India Operations Center. He has 25 years of Industry experience. Prior to joining IEEE in 2011 Harish Mysore has worked in IBM India as Program Director for Semiconductor R&D and Design Division and also managed IP Licensing and Alliances for IBM in India. Harish has also worked in Texas Instruments as General Manager, Motorola, Analog Devices and Wipro in technology development and business leadership roles.
In his current role as Senior Director-IEEE India Operations, Harish is managing a team of 50 staff in India., The organization works on IEEE Standards, Software development, Marketing and Sales for India Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. India office is instrumental in Development of Educational programs in India and to increase IEEE visibility in India through Various initiatives. He is also working on expanding IEEE membership base and improves membership experience in India. Harish is working towards bringing internationally acclaimed IEEE seminars and Conferences to India.
He is member of several associations and Industry bodies in India, Harish has deep understanding of technology and public policy, besides Harish is an active farmer.
Dr. N. Kumarappan
Chair, IEEE Madras Section
Dr. N. Kumarappan
Chair, IEEE Madras Section
N. Kumarappan received the Graduate degree from Madurai Kamaraj University, Tamil Nadu, India
in 1982, the Post-Graduate degree from Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, India in 1989 and the Ph.D. degree from CEG Anna University, Tamil Nadu, India in 2004, under QIP fellowship AICTE, India.
He is currently a Professor with the Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and
Technology, Annamalai University. He is having 29 years of experience to his credit as an educator and
researcher. He has published more than 115 international journal and conference papers. International Journal Papers – 40, IEEE digital library – 33, International conference – 62, National conference – 8. His current research interests include power system operation and control, electricity price forecasting, EHV transmission fault diagnosis, FACTS devices, power system reliability, smart grid and artificial intelligence techniques.
Dr.Kumarappan is a Life Fellow of the Institution of Engineer’s (India) anda Life Member of the Indian Society of Technical Education. He is an IEEE Madras Section Vice-Chairman, IEEE CIS Madras Chapter Chair and a Coordinator for more than 50 IEEE Madras Section organized FDP, Workshop and TISP
programs ect. He was the recipient of the IEEE Madras Section Motivation Award in 2010 and the Certificate
of Appreciation in 2012, third rank in the chapter activities 2015. He was the organiser of a special session in IEEE WCCI 2010 Spain and IEEE WCCI 2016 Canada. He is a Speaker, Reviewer and Session Chair forIEEE/IET-U.K. international conferences and other international journals. He was the outstanding reviewer for the Elsevier international journal of electric power and energy system 2015. He was the recipient of the IEEE-NNS Outstanding Paper Travel Grant Award, Australia 2002 and the IEEE PES Student Program Award, USA 2003.
Mr. Girish Khilari
Chair, IEEE Pune Section
Mr. Girish Khilari
Chair, IEEE Pune Section
Customer-centric engineering and business leader with focus on technology, data, and information. CTO and Head, India Operations. Manages end-to-end product portfolios with "Concept-to-Market" and "Life-cycle" phases. Handled with great passion the teams of product developers, the group was responsible for the annual revenue close to $300M. Heads P&L responsibilities in product development, support,
maintenance and services organisations at global level. Manages groups responsible for both NEW and CURRENT engineering solutions.
In the career span so far, fortunate to work for/with both large enterprises and start-ups in various domains like product organisations, services companies, research setups, professional
organisations and educational institutes.
As a Chairman of IEEE Pune Section, instrumental in bringing technology to masses especially in education and agriculture domains. Purely a volunteering role. It helps in increasing the horizons beyond computers by forming the ecosystem of academicians, incubators, NGOs, agriculturists, government and technologists(engineering, physical sciences, computer science, data science). Special Interest Groups (SIGs) for Affordable Agriculture (AA) and Healthcare are formed. Enjoys mentoring raw talent in technical and people skills. Participates in many start-up operations.
Visiting faculty, Industry Advisory Board(IAB) member, Board of Study(BOS) member, Industrial Associate in the National Innovation & Startup Policy (NISP) for various universities including Savitribai
Phule Pune University (SPPU).
Ms. Maheshi B. Dissanayake
Chair Elect, IEEE Sri Lanka Section
Ms. Maheshi B. Dissanayake
Chair Elect, IEEE Sri Lanka Section
Dr. Maheshi Buddhinee Dissanayake received the B.Sc. Engineering degree with First Class Honours in electrical and electronic engineering from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, in 2006, and the Ph.D. in electronic engineering from the University of Surrey, U.K., in 2010. Since 2013, she has been a Senior Lecturer with the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya. She has been a visiting research fellow at King's College London, UK, from 2015 to 2017. She has served as an organising committee member and TPC Member of many IEEE conferences, and as a reviewer in IEEE journals in the area of Molecular communication and image processing. Dr. Maheshi is a Senior Member of IEEE and at present she is a member of R10 WIE committee, Chair Elect of IEEE Sri Lanka Section, member of IEEE HAC Communications Committee, and Chair of IEEE WIE Sri Lanka section. Her research interests include error correction codes, robust video communication, molecular communication, machine learning, and biomedical image analysis.
Prof. Bozenna Pasik-Duncan
Professor at The University of Kansas
Prof. Bozenna Pasik-Duncan
Professor at The University of Kansas
She received Master's degree in Mathematics from University of Warsaw, Ph.D. and D.Sc. (habilitation doctorate) degrees from Warsaw School of Economics (SGH) in Poland. Before moving to University of Kansas (KU) in 1984, she was faculty member of Department of Mathematics at SGH. At KU she is Professor of Mathematics, Courtesy Professor of EECS and AE, ITTC Investigator, CBC affiliate, Chancellors Club Teaching Professor, and KU Women's Hall of Fame inductee. She is Life Fellow of IEEE, Fellow of International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC), and Fellow of Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM). She is a recipient of the IEEE Third Millennium Medal and IEEE Control Systems Society (CSS) Distinguished Member Award. She has served in many capacities in several societies including IEEE CSS Vice President, Polish Mathematical Society (PTM) - Warsaw Branch Vice President, IEEE Society on Social Implications of Technology (SSIT) Board of Governors member, Program Director of Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) Activity Group on Control and Systems Theory (CST), Chair of IEEE CSS Technical Committee on Control Education and IEEE CSS Board of Governors Member, Chair of American Automatic Control Council (AACC) Education Committee, member of IFAC Technical Board, Chair of IFAC Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion, Immediate Past Chair of IEEE WIE Committee, co-founder of IEEE CSS Standing Committee on Women in Control (WIC) and its first Chair, member of IEEE Computer Society (CS) History Committee, member of Award Boards of IFAC and AWM, founder and faculty advisor of AWM and SIAM Student Chapters at KU, founder and coordinator of Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month (MSAM)/ Outreach Program at KU, and founder and Chair of Stochastic Adaptive Control Seminar at KU. She is an Associate Editor of several Journals, and author and co-author of over 200 technical papers and book chapters. Her research is interdisciplinary and primarily in stochastic adaptive control, data analysis and modeling, and in STEM education. She is a recipient of many awards including IREX Fellow, NSF Career Advancement, KU Women of Distinction, Kemper Fellow, IFAC Outstanding Service, Steeples Service to Kansans, H.O.P.E. , AWM L. Hay, Morrison, Max Wells, B. Price, Polish Ministry of Higher Education and Science, and IEEE EAB Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing Education. Her hobbies are music, art, poetry and traveling. She has visited 55 countries. She is passionate about teaching and helping others. Her husband, Tyrone Duncan, IEEE Life Fellow is an EE, and professor of mathematics; her daughter, Dominique Duncan, IEEE SM is an EE, mathematician, and assistant professor of neurology and bioengineering.
Jenifer Castillo
Territory Manager of the Caribbean, Parker Hannifin Corp.
Jenifer Castillo
Territory Manager of the Caribbean, Parker Hannifin Corp.
Recognized with the IEEE MGA Achievement Award 2020, “For sustained and outstanding achievements in promoting Students, YP, and WIE membership development in Latin America and the Caribbean”, and the Oscar C. Fernández, IEEE Region 9 recognition to the outstanding volunteer in LatinAmerica.