ASME Congress to Feature Engineering for Global Development Keynote and Forum

ASME Congress to Feature Engineering for international Development Keynote and Forum ASME Congress to Feature Engineering for Global Development Keynote and Forum ASME Congress to Feature Engineering for Global Development Keynote and ForumOver the past several years, the engineering of affordable, appropriate and sustainable solutions for the developing world - or Engineering for Global Development (EGD) - has become a critical area of concern for both the engineering profession and for ASME. From co-founding the Engineering for Change partnership to establishing an EGD programs area within the Society, ASME is committed to fostering the research and collaboration necessary to improve the quality of life in the worlds poorest communities. For that reason, Engineering for Global Development has been selected as the theme of the 2014 ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition in Montreal, Canada. The 2014 Congress will take place from Nov. 14-20 at the Pala is des Congres convention center in downtown Montreal. The Congress will feature a full day of EGD-related programming on Monday, Nov. 17, starting with a special opening session and keynote that will lead into a three-part EGD Forum continuing throughout the afternoon. The opening session keynote, which will be presented as part of ASMEs successful Decision Point Dialogue series, will feature social entrepreneurs and representatives from industry and academia discussing the various issues associated with bringing appropriate technologies to underserved communities - and the crucial role engineers play in this process. The session will address such topics as economic trends in emerging markets, funding mechanisms in social ventures, engineering rigor within the user-centric design process, and cultivating partnerships with industry. John Hockenberry will be the moderator for the Engineering for Global Development opening keynote session at the 2014 Congress in Mon treal. Panelists for this special keynote session, to take place from 800 a.m.-930 a.m., will include Paul Polak, founder and chief executive officer of Windhorse International and Paul Polak Enterprises Bryan Willson, hochschulprof of mechanical engineering at Colorado State University, founder of the universitys Engines and Energy Conversion Lab and co-director of the Energy Institute and Shyam Rajan, chief technology officer for GE Healthcare India. The keynote will be moderated by award-winning journalist John Hockenberry, host of National Public Radios The Takeaway, as well as the moderator for second ASME Decision Point Dialogues event that took place in Washington, D.C., earlier this year. A continental breakfast will be served prior to the opening session, from 730 a.m.-800 a.m. The EGD Forum, encompassing three informative sessions for those who would like to learn more on the topic, will follow the keynote session. The Forum sessions are intended to dig deeper into topics introduced during the keynote session using case studies and discussions that illustrate the basic concepts of global development, including the user-centric design process, cultural challenges, field testing of working prototypes, and the critical roles academia, industry and local communities play in ensuring success in the EGD space. The first session, Case Studies in Global Development from 945 p.m.-1130 a.m., will cover EGDs opportunities for the entrepreneur, the positive social impact engineers can make in the developing world, and first-hand accounts of what to expect when bringing technologies to these emerging markets. Lyle Ruppert, principal systems engineer at Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp., will join panelists from the breakfast keynote as a presenter for this session. (From left) Paul Polak of Windhorse International and Paul Polak Enterprises, Shyam Rajan from GE Healthcare, and Bryan Willson of Colorado State University will be the p anelists for the Congress keynote session, which will be presented as part of the ASME Decision Point Dialogues series. From 100 p.m.-245 p.m., a second Forum session, The Rise of Research in Engineering for Global Development, will focus on the research being conducted at universities and the need for more researchers and students to get involved in EGD. The speakers at this session - including Amos Winter, assistant professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and winner of the 2010 ASME Innovation Showcase, Nathan Johnson, assistant professor at Arizona State University, Benjamin Linder, associate professor at Olin College, and Annica Wayman, program manager at the United States Agency for International Development - will discuss the ever-evolving design process, educational models, EGD curriculum development, their personal successes and failures, as well as the need for larger research grants and better funding mechanisms to ensure the progress of EGD. Closing out the day will be the Aligning Global Development with an Academic Career session, which will offer academic administrators the opportunity to discuss EGDs growing interest within the millennial generation, its role and value within academia, and how to establish the tenure track to encourage more researchers to pursue EGD. Among the speakers at this session, which will be presented in a town hall format from 300 p.m.-445 p.m., will be Gary Dirks, professor at Arizona State University and director of the universitys Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability Gang Chen, professor and head of MITs department of mechanical engineering and William J. Wepfer, Eugene C. Gwaltney Jr. School Chair and Professor at Georgia Tech and ASME senior vice president, Public Affairs and Outreach. For more details on the Engineering for Global Development sessions and the rest of the 2014 ASME Congress program, visit asmeconferences.org/Congress2014. For information on registration rat es and to register, visit asmeconferences.org/Congress2014/ConfRegistration.cfm.