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Session Description

Featuring:

2023 Best Overall PIC Paper:

PIC II
Title: Nuestro Impacto: An Insider Look into the Connections between Our Past
Experiences and Current Teaching and Mentoring Practices

Authors:
Dr. Idalis Villanueva Alarcon, University of Florida, Dr. Laura Melissa Cruz Castro, University of Florida, Dr. John Alexander Mendoza, University of Florida, John Mendoza Garcia, University of Florida, Dr. Edward Latorre-Navarro, University of Florida, Dr. Lilianny Virguez, University of Florida

2023 Best Overall Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Paper:

Title: Designing and Implementing a Workshop on the Intersection between Social Justice and Engineering

Authors:
Kavitha Chintam, Dr. Alexis Prybutok, Willa Brenneis, Jonathon M. Chan, Joie Green, Ruihan Li, Meagan Olsen, Sapna L. Ramesh, Carolyn E. Ramirez, Dhanvi Ram Vemulapalli, and Dr. Jennifer Cole

2024 Best Overall Zone Paper:

Title:
Authors:

Moderated by

1. Dr. B "Grant" Grant Crawford P.E.

Speakers

1. Sri Yash Tadimalla

   Sri Yash Tadimalla is a Ph.D. student in the College of Computing and Informatics at UNC Charlotte, where he is pursuing an interdisciplinary degree in Computer Science and Sociology. Serving as the Technology Focal Point for the United Nations MGCY Science Policy Interface and the incumbent General Secretary of the World Student Platform for Engineering Education Development (SPEED), he advocates for the equitable advancement of STEM education on a global scale, actively fostering youth participation in STEM initiatives through engagements with the United Nations Major Group and stakeholder mechanisms. As an immigrant delving into technology access research, Yash offers nuanced insights into the intricate links between educational and technological accessibility and global food and health insecurities, all profoundly shaped by his research, personal journey and professional experiences. At UNC Charlotte he is assisting various NSF research projects under the Center for Humane AI, the Center for Education Innovation (CEIR) Lab, and the Human-Centered Computing (HCC) Lab. He is the President of the Charlotte Human-centered Research Group and the Graduate and Professional Student Government at UNCC, serving on various Boards and Committees at Charlotte. His research agenda explores how an individual's identity influences their interaction with and learning of technology, particularly in the domains of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Computer Science (CS) education. He has showcased his research at distinguished international conferences across diverse global locations including North America, South Africa, Western Europe, Australia, and South Asia.

2. Jim Hanna

   Microsoft Corporation

   Director of Datacenter Engineering, Procurement, and Construction Sustainability

   In his 30 years in sustainability, Jim Hanna has become a passionate industry expert in driving companies to link their investments in sustainability directly to business outcomes. As one of the pioneers advancing the “business case for sustainability” he’s spent his career working to help companies move beyond anecdotal, qualitative and non-business metrics to justify and compete internally with other business priorities for their sustainability and community investments. In the last several years, he’s also applied that expertise and business-linkage lens to the area of corporate community investments, a field that is still essentially a philanthropic endeavor at most companies. He’s built a groundbreaking methodology to quantify community thriving, link investments to substantive community impacts, and monetize the ROI of corporate community investments
   Work Experience:
   Jim joined Microsoft in 2006 as the company’s first director of datacenter sustainability, providing strategic environmental direction in the fields of land-use, green building, energy, and water to the company’s growing cloud computing platform. He then transitioned to lead the company’s focus on urban planning and community prosperity in its datacenter communities around the world.
   Previously, Jim served as chief sustainability officer for Starbucks, leading company’s global sustainability mission in green building, energy conservation, and circular economy, in addition to serving as Starbucks external environmental policy voice and advocate on Capitol Hill.
   Prior to Starbucks, Jim served as Director of Environmental Affairs for Xanterra Parks & Resorts at Yellowstone National Park.
   A native of Washington state, Jim earned a BS in Environmental Sciences from Washington State University and is a U.S. Green Building Council LEED-accredited professional. He serves on the advisory council of the Yellowstone Park Foundation and the Washington State University College of Arts and Sciences Advisory Council.

Papers Presented

1. Nuestro Impacto: An Insider Look into the Connections Between our Past Experiences and Current Teaching and Mentoring Practices [view paper]
   Idalis Villanueva Alarcón (University of Florida)
2. Designing and Implementing a Workshop on the Intersection Between Social Justice and Engineering [view paper]
   Kavitha Chintam (Northwestern University)