Our Board

Grayson is an IEEE Senior Member and the IEEE MOVE Operations lead in the United States. As such he is responsible for the IEEE MOVE trucks and associated equipment that is deployed to natural disaster sites in the United States to support emergency communications. Grayson has been on the IEEE Future Directions Committee and remains active in IEEE Region 3 activities. His professional background is in digital communications, robotics, public safety and emergency response.

Lwanga Herbert is an innovation and technology enthusiast and practitioner inspired by technological solutions to diverse problems and challenges. He is the Co-founder of M/S LOG`EL GROUP LTD, an IT company based in Uganda and the co-founder of Log`el Science Foundation, a civil society organization which conducts research and development in science and technology. Lwanga Herbert was a beneficiary of the presidential innovation fund in Uganda from 2000-2005, which allowed him to develop a variety of innovations to address corresponding community challenges. These innovations were patented with the support of the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology. He has made several contributions within the IEEE community, which includes co-founding the IEEE Uganda Section and implementing humanitarian projects and programs in Uganda with IEEE support.

Simay Akar Koehler is a sustainable energy expert and multi-award-winning entrepreneur in the energy industry. She is the CEO and Founder of AK Energy Consulting, specializing in environmental impact assessments and clean energy supply chain solutions.

With expertise in photovoltaic manufacturing, battery storage, electric vehicles, and renewable energy systems, Simay has held leadership roles in multicultural enterprises across the globe.

An IEEE Senior Member and dedicated volunteer since 2007, she has significantly contributed to advancing humanitarian and energy initiatives. Simay holds a degree from Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Türkiye, and participated in the Energy Innovation and Emerging Technologies Program at Stanford University. She is passionate about driving innovative clean energy technologies, championing sustainable development, and mentoring the next generation of energy leaders.

Sadhana Attavar, an Electronics and Communication Engineer with 38 years  experience in Science Communication, served as  Director of  Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum, Bangalore under  the Government of India. She specializes in establishing Science Museums and curating exhibitions  on Science and Technology. Her notable curations include the Space Technology gallery, BEL Hall of Electronics, and  “Seeds of Culture” exhibition. She  played a pivotal role in establishing VSAT satellite communication network, which enabled educational programs for rural India. Currently, she is Advisor Museum and Science Outreach at National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore. A senior IEEE member, she has held several leadership roles, including Chair Women in Engineering (Bangalore Section).Currently she is  Vice Chair Humanitarian Technology Activities India Council and leads the IEEE MOVE India program.

IEEE Roles

• MOVE Global Committee (MGC), Humanitarian Technologies Board: Vice Chair 2024
• IEEE Region 9 MOVE Coordinator 2024-2025.
• MOVE Puerto Rico Chair 2022-2024
• American Red Cross Puerto Rico chapter volunteer since 2020.
• Member of the IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society since 2018.

Professional and Educational History

• Geospatial Information Manager of the Caribbean Climate Hub, USDA, 2022-2024.
• Finished her PhD. in the Environmental Sciences Department at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus. Her thesis combined GIS, Remote Sensing, numerical modeling and statistics to analyze coastal processes impacts to archaeological sites in Loíza, Puerto Rico.
• Previously worked as a GIS Analyst and archaeology technician for the Council of Archaeology of Puerto Rico.
• Completed her Master of Science in GIS at the University of Redlands, California, where she developed a predictive model to evaluate archaeological sensitivity.

Prof. Mohamed Essaaidi (IEEE Senior Member) is CEO of the Moroccan School of Engineering and a Professor and past Dean of ENSIAS College. He’s held several leadership positions within IEEE including the founding chair of the IEEE Morocco Section (2004), IEEE HTP Programs Chair, and IEEE SIGHT Chair (2023, 2024) where he spearheaded transformative initiatives in technology for social good, emphasizing sustainable development and the role of technology to address critical societal challenges. His extensive scholarly contributions include over 200 peer-reviewed publications and 10 books. He is the recipient of prestigious awards, including the 2023 IEEE MGA Larry Wilson Transnational Award and the 2024 IEEE Education Society William Sayle II Award, recognizing his leadership and enduring contributions to engineering education, humanitarian technologies, and digital transformation.

Dr. Fish is on the faculty of the Department of Computer Science of Princeton University. Besides Princeton, he has worked at Bell Labs, Bellcore, Panasonic, Mformation, and Netovations. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University. Dr. Fish has been awarded 17 patents. He is a Life Fellow of the IEEE.

IEEE service: President, IEEE SA; Member IEEE BoD; Chair, IEEE Industry Engagement Committee; Chair and Founder, TA Committee on Standards; Member, Publication Services and Products Board; Member, Products and Service Committee; Member, Employee Benefits and Compensation Committee; Member, IEEE Conferences Committee; ComSoc VP of Industry and Standards; ComSoc Chair of GlobeCom/ICC Management and Strategy Committee; Chair, IEEE Edge-Cloud Standards Committee; Steering Committee Chair, IEEE Consumer Communications and Networking Conference

Dr. Stephanie Gillespie serves on the IEEE Educational Activities Board as the chair of the University Resources Committee. Prior to this role, she chaired the EPICS in IEEE committee, helping to facilitate a community of service learning practitioners and reviewing service-learning humanitarian project proposals for financial support. Her experience in service learning began at Arizona State University where she was a faculty co-director of the ASU EPICS program. In her current role as the Associate Dean for the Tagliatela College of Engineering at the University of New Haven (CT, USA), she supports student and faculty success while continuing to engage her first-year engineering class with a service learning project. She earned her PhD in electrical and computer engineering from Georgia Tech with a focus on speech processing to detect emotions in individuals with communication disorders.

Matthew Imhoff is Technical Delivery Manager at UTS Rapido, a novel technology consultancy based at the University of Technology Sydney and focused on industry and social impact. Previously he developed farming robotics technologies at the Australian Centre for Field Robotics (University of Sydney). Matthew has a long history of volunteering to support humanitarian engineering and sustainable development. He has volunteered for Engineers Without Borders Australia since 2006, including serving as New South Wales Region President. At IEEE, he has participated in SIGHT and HTB sub-committees since 2020 and is currently Chair of the Robotics and Automation Society, NSW Chapter. Matthew holds degrees in electrical engineering and mathematics from the University of Queensland, and a masters in international development from the University of New South Wales.

Kalyani Matey is the Young Professionals representative to the IEEE Humanitarian Technologies Board and humanitarian lead at IEEE YP CSTF. She will chair the YP Climate Summit 2025, hosted by the R1+2 YP Committee. She was part of the IEEE YP CSTF delegation at the 2024 UN Summit of the Future and contributed to the NY Climate Week 2024 event hosted by IEEE YP CSTF.

Kalyani holds an MBA from Great Lakes Institute of Management and previously worked as Program Manager for Patient Support Programs at GSK Pharmaceuticals India. She has volunteering experience in social impact and sustainability initiatives across 12 years in India. She’s keen on actioning humanitarian impact through IEEE.

Vikass Monebhurrun received the PhD degree in 1994 and the Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches in 2010. He is the founder of the IEEE RADIO international conference series for which he served as General Chair for all eight editions since 2012. He served as Associate-Editor and Guest-Editor for the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Transactions and Editor of the IoP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering. He is currenlty member of the IEEE SA Board of Governors. He was recipient of the Union Radio-Scientifique Internationale Young Scientist Award in 1996, the IEEE SA International Working Group Chair Award in 2017, the IEEE Ulrich L. Rohde Humanitarian Technical Field Project Award in 2018, the IEC 1906 Award in 2018 and the IEEE SA International Award in 2019.

Vickie has over 33 years of experience in the Aerospace and Defense Industry at Collins Aerospace. She has held several technical and management roles including software development, engineering management, IT management, project management, she is currently leading an systems and support advanced manufacturing team.

She is a IEEE Senior Member, the past Region 4 Director (2023-24) and IEEE Board member (2023-24), 2025 Vice Chair Geographic Unit Operations, 2025 WIE International Leadership Conference Vice Chair. She has been an active volunteer for over 18 years. She has held several other positions in IEEE, MGA, Region and Section. Her roles have set strategies and goals for the benefit of the organization. Vickie has dedicated her efforts to assist others, both professionally and personally.

Dr. Pritpal Singh is a Professor of Electrical Engineering at Villanova University. He has been working in solar energy and battery research for over 40 years. He teaches courses in electronics, renewable energy systems, and information and communication technologies for development (ICT4D). He has worked on humanitarian engineering projects in several countries including Nicaragua, Guatemala, Ecuador, Rwanda, and Burundi. He served as the IEEE SIGHT Education Subcommittee Chair from 2017 – 2019, the 2022 Partnerships Committee Chair of IEEE HAC, and as the host and Chair of the 2023 and 2024 IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conferences. In 2022 he was awarded the International Federation of Engineering Education Societies (IFEES) Duncan Fraser Global Award for Excellence in Engineering Education for his educational work in Humanitarian Engineering.

Lucia Pia Torres is an electronics engineer from Tucumán, Argentina, specializing in project management, process optimization, digital transformation, and innovation in industry settings. She is currently a Sr. Project Manager at Globant and a Professor at Di Tella University in Buenos Aires. Pia is a social entrepreneur, UN SDGs Promotor, Diversity and Inclusion Champion, and STEM Education Ambassador. Pia is an IEEE Senior Member, an IEEE-Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) Member, and has been an IEEE volunteer since 2001. Currently she is a Board Member of the IEEE Industry Applications Society as the Diversity & Inclusion Chair. Awards include: the 2020 JCI Argentina Outstanding Young Person for Humanitarian & Volunteering Services, the IEEE Young Professionals Hall of Fame Award, and the 2019 IEEE WIE Inspiring Member of the Year.

Dr. Adil Usman works as an R&D Tech Lead at Varroc Engineering Limited in India. He was a postdoctoral researcher at National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Colorado, United States from 2022-2023. Dr. Usman holds a PhD in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), India. His research areas of interests include design and diagnosis of electrical machines & drives for all electric transportation systems. Dr. Usman is a Senior Member of IEEE and serves as a board member for the IEEE Industry Application Society (IAS). He is an active volunteer in humanitarian technologies, contributing to projects, publications, and events including the IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) and an IAS Humanitarian Ad-hoc Committee. Adil has volunteered for SIGHT and played a key role in setting up SIGHT Groups in Region 10.

Felix Vega is the Chief Researcher at the Directed Energy Research Center (DERC) within the Technology Innovation Institute (TII), Abu Dhabi, UAE. He leads an international team of scientists and engineers transforming fundamental technologies and ideas into Directed Energy solutions for the industry. His work includes developing technologies for humanitarian demining.

He holds a Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland, and another from the National University of Colombia.

Since 2019, he has served as Secretary of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society and as Associate Editor for IEEE Transaction on Antennas and Propagation. His contributions have earned awards such as the URSI Young Scientist Award and IEEE EMC John Howard Memorial Award.

Emi Yano, a Senior Member of IEEE, currently serves as IEEE Region 10 Secretary 2025-2026. She graduated from Chuo University, Tokyo, Japan, specializing in Kansei Engineering (Affective Engineering), focusing on user-centered information processing technologies.

As HR Manager at Ricoh IT Solutions, Yokohama, Japan, Emi brings over a decade of expertise in Human Resources and Talent Development. She specializes in advancing DE&I, career development, workplace communication, and organizational growth.

An active IEEE volunteer since 2008, Emi has held key roles, including Chair 2019-2022 of the IEEE Region 10 Women in Engineering (WIE) and Chair 2023-2024 of the IEEE Region 10 Humanitarian Technology Activities Committee (HTA). Passionate about connecting people and fostering innovation, Emi continues to make a meaningful impact through IEEE activities worldwide.