Who We Are
E4C’s mission is to prepare, educate and activate the international engineering workforce to improve the quality of life of vulnerable populations around the world. We do this by providing resources and platforms that accelerate the development of impactful solutions and cultivating change agents.
Meet Our Team
What’s your real-life superpower?
I’m immune to jet lag. A fantastic superpower for someone who is a frequent traveler.
What’s your favorite underrated technology in global development? Post-harvest preservation systems are some of the most underrated but significant technologies in global development. About 1.3 billion tons food gets lost globally per year, and much of that occurs in low-income countries. Efficient agricultural preservation systems (such as off-grid refrigerators and crop storage systems) can reduce food losses substantially and improve food security around the world.
What’s your real-life superpower? I’m immune to jet lag. A fantastic superpower for someone who is a frequent traveler.
What’s in your go bag for fast getaways? Universal power adapter, camera, running shoes, expandable duffel bag for unexpected souvenirs, sunscreen and Sharpies.
What inspires you?
The thoughtful letters I receive from engineers with a vision for an equitable future.
How long have you been with E4C? Since we were in beta with just three dozen testers and a dream.
What’s on your desk? I work on a lap desk on my porch where I can see the Pacific if I stand on tippy toe.
Cell phones or toilets? Toilets. Because, come on. Phones are great, but toilets.
What inspires you?
People's excitement when they look at something they've just done or built working successfully.
What’s your favorite underrated technology in global development? Rope-pumps. Used for 1000+ years, they're still a great solution to safe-water supply for rural communities today. They can be constructed and maintained locally, from materials available in almost any trading center across the world, enabling a great degree of local ownership. They also have great adaptability to use for irrigation or to be driven by different power sources!
What’s your real life superpower? My ability to remember and make fast mental time zone conversions certainly comes in handy given E4C’s global reach!
Cell phones or toilets? Toilets. They’re not only dignifying and a vital tool to combat major health risks but also have promising potential for waste-to-energy and to produce agricultural inputs.
What inspires you?
People. The dream of a better world. The roles science and technology play in creating our reality.
What is your favorite underrated technology in global development? Paperclips. And I must say I am a big believer in human creativity and imagination as the ultimate tool. So how many users can you give a paperclip?
Cell phones or toilets? Definitely toilets. No cell phone will ever ground you this much and remind you that, when it comes down to the basics, we are just as any and every other living being on Earth! As we embark further into this technological age, we should never forget where we come from.
What is your real-life superpower? Getting into other peoples' shoes and stories, and really feeling how they feel.
What inspires you?
The wild outdoors and passionate people
How long have you been with E4C? About a year, but I have been involved with the community since 2020 when I participated in and reached among the finalists of the Siemens Design Challenge. Later, I joined as an E4C 2021 Summer Fellow where I worked and volunteered in several diverse projects.
What is your real superpower? I see the brightside everywhere I look, I never get tired of learning, and I drink a ridiculous quantity of water per day.
What is your go bag for fast getaways? A book, my water bottle, my camera, and some nuts.
What’s your real-life superpower?
Turning anything, even the most menial of tasks, into a friendly competition.
How long have you been with E4C? I was a volunteer for E4C in 2019 working on the State of EGD Report for North America before I was brought on as an Expert Fellow for the 2020 and 2021 Summer Cohorts. In September of 2021, I transitioned into my role as Research Manager. I had such positive experiences with E4C over the years, I just couldn’t leave!
What’s on your desk? At my work-from-home desk, I have my laptop, pictures of my nephew and nieces, a mug of coffee, and dog treats.
What’s your real-life superpower? Turning anything, even the most menial of tasks, into a friendly competition.
What inspires you?
People's creative capacity (via written words, art, hardware/software products, ...) to reimagine a more just, equitable, and sustainable future.
How long have you been with E4C? I am a Forever Fellow by now, was first an Energy Research Fellow in 2018, volunteered as co-lead for the E4C Corps pilot project in 2019, became an Expert Fellow in 2020, and a Program Coordinator in 2021.
What inspires you? People's creative capacity (via written words, art, hardware/software products, ...) to reimagine a more just, equitable, and sustainable future.
Cell phones or toilets? Tough question.. but cell phones! They allow access to information and information is power, with a cell phone that has internet access I can find a way to build my own toilet.
Steering Committee
MADIHA KOTB
Director
Madiko Consulting & ASME Past President
MIKE LIGHTNER
Professor & Chair
Electrical, Computer, and Energy Engineering, CU Boulder IEEE HAC
JASON PRAPAS
Research Director
Tata Center for Technology & Design, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
SEEMA PATEL
Division Chief
Innovation Design and Advisory, Global Development Lab, USAID
BOB NANES
Executive Director
D-Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Engineering for Change (E4C) works with partners who share our mission and passion for improving the quality of life. E4C strives to build a multidisciplinary coalition of change agents and invites your organization to join us in helping global development practitioners to design and deploy impactful solutions for underserved communities. Our partners help us develop technical knowledge, advocate for development engineering and multiply our growing network of practitioners. To become a partner, email us at partners@engineeringforchange.org
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by engineers.
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