March 20, 2017
Four keynote speakers highlight global engineering expo at Purdue
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Representatives of USAID and the United Nations Foundation are among the speakers talking about using engineering innovation for sustainable development in low-income countries at the I2D Lab Exposition, March 23 and 24.
Ticora Jones, division chief for the Higher Education Solutions Network in the USAID U.S. Global Development Lab, and Mara van Loggerenberg, deputy director of Global Policy and U.N. Relations at the United Nations Foundation, are among four keynote speakers to appear at Purdue’s Global Engineering Programs event.
This is the third year for the event. The I2D Lab, launched in 2015, supports engineering faculty and student innovations that can have or are having a transformative impact on thousands of people in areas such as water and sanitation, energy access, labor-saving and agricultural mechanization, engineering skills education, low-cost disease diagnostics and biomedical equipment, resilient buildings, supply chain logistics for humanitarian response for populations in low-income countries.
The event is free and open to the public.
Radha Basu, CEO of iMerit, and Dorothy Okello, director of innovation at Resilient Africa Network from Makerere Univerity Uganda, also will speak. All four speakers are scheduled beginning at 1 p.m. March 24 in the West Faculty Lounge of Purdue Memorial Union. Additional invited guests from Intellectual Ventures and Catholic Relief Services also will be present.
They are preceded by Purdue innovation pitches and panel discussions from 8:30-11:30 a.m.
Arvind Raman, associate dean for the Global Engineering Programs and Robert V. Adams Professor of Mechanical Engineering, said the expo focuses on engineering innovation to tackle global development goals set forth by the U.N.
“The application of science and technology for innovations to help solve these global sustainable development challenges is at the heart of the global engineering profession,” he said. “The I2D Lab Expo brings together the world’s leaders and Purdue innovators and partners together to create new ideas and partnerships for innovations for international development.”
A poster competition, sponsored by Land O’Lakes, showcasing Purdue innovators and innovation for international development from 5-7 p.m. March 23 will feature research and development projects involving engineering students and faculty and international partners.
Leah Jamieson, the John A. Edwardson Dean of the College of Engineering, will present opening remarks prior to the poster competition.
Writer: Brian L. Huchel, 765-494-2084, bhuchel@purdue.edu
Source: Arvind Raman, 765-494-5733, raman@purdue.edu
