Dr. Sajith Wijesuriya

Biography:

Sajith Wijesuriya obtained his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering (Thermal Sciences) from the Colorado School of Mines in the USA. He works as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) of the United States and supports Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) workstreams Clean Energy Solutions Center (CESC). NICE Future, and 21 CPP.  His core research areas are Thermal Energy Storage (TES), building energy sciences, grid-responsive buildings and grid interaction modeling.

This is his 4th year with IEEE with a focus on interfacing IEEE with United Nations mechanisms. He has worked at the technology interfaces (SPI-MGCY), climate (UNFCCC TEC Task Force, YOUNGO), and development agendas (SDG7 Youth Constituency, CED Sri Lanka) spaces for the last decade. He also founded the organization Science Policy Circle which is accredited to the UNCCD process. He will be coming into the IEEE YP global task force as the Chair of the Climate and Sustainability Task Force.

Address:United States

Dr. Sneha Satish Hegde

Biography:

Dr. Sneha Satish Hegde completed her doctoral studies in Electronics at the University of Montpellier, France. Her research project aligns with the Territorial Just Transition Plan and the Energy-Climate Plan in two key ways: First, by investigating the aging of components in future HVDC and MVDC energy networks, critical for renewable energy integration. Second, by studying eco-friendly insulation materials, it aims to reduce system size, enhance defect detection, and lower the carbon footprint in component manufacturing.

She has been a member of IEEE and DEIS, taking on the role of Chair for DEIS Women In Engineering (WIE) and Vice-Chair for DEIS Young Professionals (YP). Recently, she was appointed as the board member of DEIS AdCom. Additionally, she is the Vice-Chair for Communications for IEEE CS SYP and leads the Partnerships for the IEEE Young Professionals Climate and Sustainability Task Force (CSTF).

Address:United States

Sukanya S Meher 

Biography:

Ms. Sukanya S Meher is a Member of Technical Staff at Hypres Inc, NY. In her role, she focuses on the design and development of energy efficient superconductor electronic circuits with diverse applications in digital signal processing, sensors, computing, and communication systems. She earned her Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University, NY, in 2016. Sukanya’s proficiency spans circuit design, modeling, simulation, tool development, and testing of superconductor chips under cryogenic conditions. Sukanya’s passion lies in contributing to sustainable and energy-efficient computing solutions.

Sukanya is actively involved with the IEEE Young Professionals Climate and Sustainability Taskforce (CSTF) by supporting the team in various events as Communications Lead. She recently played a key role in orchestrating a Young Professionals Dialogue Session with the UNFCCC during New York Climate Week. Additionally, Sukanya serves as a committee member of the IEEE Young Professionals Council on Superconductivity (CSC). Her commitment extends to volunteering for AnitaB.org and the Grace Hopper Celebration, and advocating for empowerment of women in technology.

Cybele Ghanem

Biography:

Cybele Ghanem is a Computer and Telecommunications Engineer from the Lebanese University Faculty of Engineering II Roumieh, with a Research Masters degree in Telecommunications, Networking and Cyber security. She is currently part of the Operations Team at Invigo Offshore as a Support and Implementation Engineer.

Besides her professional experience, her interpersonal skills are highlighted in her volunteering work.

Cybele joined IEEE in 2016 and has been an active volunteer ever since. She joined the IEEE YP Climate and Sustainability Task Force in January 2023 and was appointed as a member in the Region 8 Climate Change Adhoc Committee. She is also leading the IEEE Computer Society Students and Young Professionals Climate and Sustainability Space.

Additionally, Cybele holds several positions in IEEE and was recently appointed as IEEE Day 2023-2024 Chair and IEEE Students Virtual Speakers Bureau 2024 Chair. She is also currently the Design and Social Media Lead for IEEEXtreme18.0 and Lead IEEE Puzzler Volunteer. She was also elected the Student Activities Representative of Lebanon Section, as well as the Treasurer of the IEEE Young Professionals Lebanon for 2023-2024.

Kayna Mendoza Trujillo

Biography:

Kayna Mendoza Trujillo has an academic and professional background in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering alongside 3 years of industry experience in the aerospace sector. She has since transitioned to research in nanomagnetism for energy efficient computing at Argonne National Laboratory.

Kayna is a member and active volunteer of the Microscopy Society Student Council as Regional Liaison, IEEE Young Professionals Community Climate and Sustainability Task Force (CSTF) as well as the Humanitarian Technologies Board (HTB). She is focused on contributing to spaces that uplift students’ voices and those that bridge technology and policy.

Naznin Akter

Biography:

Dr. Naznin Akter received her Ph.D. (2022) and MS (2020) degrees in Electrical Engineering from the Department of ECE at Florida International University (FIU), where she worked at INSYST Integrated Nanosystems Research Lab. She is currently working as a Module Development Engineer for Intel Corporation. She holds a Project Management Professional (PMP®) certification from the Project Management Institute (PMI).

She is currently holding several leadership positions in IEEE. She is the Editor-in-Chief for the IEEE Photonics Society online newsroom. She is the Chair of IEEE Photonics Society Oregon Section chapter, Chair of IEEE Women-in-Engineering Oregon section AG, and Vice- Chair of the IEEE Young Professional Oregon section AG. She is the Student Activities Professional Coordinator for the IEEE-USA Career & Professional Development Center (CPDC) committee, R6 Experience specialist for IEEE YP Mentoring-Meet, and Vice-Chair of R6 IEEE Young Professional.

Apart from IEEE, she is the assistant VP of Marketing Communications at Project Management Institute Portland Chapter. She also served as the Treasure for the Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society.

Dr. Prantik Saha

Biography:

Dr. Prantik Saha is a senior consultant at Black & Veatch and works as an advisor for clean energy projects. He is an expert on low-carbon hydrogen and fuels, energy storage systems (lithium-ion and beyond), and carbon capture, storage, and utilization technologies. With 6+ years of experience in technology development (R&D), he acts as a subject matter expert for these technologies and uses it to help clients achieve their decarbonization goals. He assists Black & Veatch clients with conceptual project design, early-stage project engineering designs, feasibility analysis, technical due diligence, independent technology assessment (bankability), resource planning, and strategic advisory services.

He got Ph.D. in Applied Physics from UC Irvine, USA, where he developed electrochemical clean energy conversion systems.  He volunteers for the Climate & Sustainability Taskforce at Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE) with technologies that are in his domain of expertise.