IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC)
Technology for the Benefit of Humanity // Villanova University, USA / October 23-26, 2024

Report on IEEE GHTC 2019

Report on IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) 2019

Ed Perkins, V. Chair

IEEE GHTC 2019 is a world class flagship conference focused on sharing practical technology enabled solutions addressing the needs of underserved populations and resource constrained environments around the world under the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

The 9th GHTC was held October 17-20, 2019 in Seattle, WA, USA. See https://ieeeghtc.org/archives/ for full details on GHTC 2019 and prior conferences.

GHTC 2019 had 214 participants from 30 countries. The program featured a student poster contest, workshops, plenary panels, keynotes, 32 sessions with over 130 paper and oral presentations, and unconference sessions.

Researchers and practitioners exchanged experiences related to these topic areas:

  • Agriculture & Food Security (UN SDG2)
  • Good Health and Well Being (SDG3)
  • Quality Education (SDG4)
  • Clean Water & Sanitation (SDG6)
  • Affordable & Clean Energy (SDG7)
  • Disaster Mitigation, Preparedness, Response & Recovery
  • Communication/Connectivity in Support of Development
  • Sustainable Development (e.g. SDGs 9, 11, 12, 14)

 

Keynote speakers:

  • Neil Sahota, Chief Innovation Officer, University of California (Emerging Technologies Research & Policy Institute) “AI is the Disruptor: How to Wield the Tool Building the 21st Century”
  • Thomas Coughlin FIEEE, 2019 President of IEEE-USA and President, Coughlin Associates “Sustainable Development and Humanitarian Activities by IEEE Members in the USA”
  • Tess Russo, Portfolio Lead and Research Scientist at Global Good “technology development for smallholder farmers in Africa and South Asia”

 

Plenary Panels:

Disaster Recovery, Disadvantaged Communities and Displaced People Panel

Moderator: Ed Perkins, GHTC 2019 V. Chair

  • John Berglund, Territorial Emergency/Disaster Services Director, The Salvation Army USA
  • Stanley Atcitty, Navajo Nation
  • James Conrad, IEEE MOVE Community Outreach

 

 

Health-Related Issues in Resource Constrained Environments Panel

Moderator: Paul Cunningham, Founder and Coordinator, mHealth4Afrika Initiative & GHTC 2019 Chair

  • Tim Wood, Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
  • Skye Gilbert, Deputy Director, Digital Health, PATH
  • Judd Walson, START Center, University of Washington

 

 

IEEE Smart Village (ISV) Energy Panel

Moderator: Alexander Anderson, Engagement Chair, IEEE Smart Village; CEO, EmpowerPack SPC

  • Robin Podmore, Co-founder and Vice-Chair, IEEE Smart Village; President, Incremental Systems Corporation
  • Ruomei Li, Secretary General (retired) of the Chinese Society of Electrical Engineering; Research Fellow, Tsinghua University
  • Monica L. Brown, Founder and Executive Director, Africa Development Promise
  • Olga Anderson, Education Chair, IEEE Smart Village
  • Taylor Hudson, Technical Designer, Kilowatts for Humanity

Special Events

GHTC 2019 featured several pre-conference Special Events on Thursday.

Participatory Workshop on Contributing to IEEE Sustainable Development Activities Around the World

Unconference sessions on Sustainable Development

 

GHTC 2019 was sponsored by IEEE Region 6, IEEE Seattle Section and IEEE SSIT (Society on Social Implications of Technology) with technical sponsorship by IEEE-USA, IEEE CES, EMBS, MTT-S, PES and IEEE Smart Village.

GHTC 2019 Patrons were the IEEE Humanitarian Activities Committee (HAC) and Global Good (Intellectual Ventures).

GHTC 2020 will be held in Seattle on October 28-Nov. 1, 2020.

Student Poster Competition Results

 

Engineering Students Unveil Projects to Help Solve World’s Humanitarian Problems at the IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference Student Poster Competition, Seattle, WA

by Mostafa Mortezaie, GHTC 2019 Student Poster Competition Chair

 

Seattle, Wash. – Engineering students from around the world convened in Seattle on October 17, 2019 to present their innovative projects to solve world’s humanitarian problems by using advanced technologies to address critical issues for the benefit of the resource-constrained and vulnerable populations in the world at the IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) Student Poster Competition: https://ieeeghtc.org/program/student-poster-compeition/

Students’ projects supported key focused areas of GHTC which is in harmony with the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals and include:

  1. Affordable & Clean Energy
  2. Agriculture & Food Security
  3. Clean Water & Sanitation
  4. Good Health and Well Being
  5. Disaster Mitigation, Preparedness, Response & Recovery
  6. Quality Education
  7. Other Related United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Competition Winners:

Judges Award ($750)

Automated Malaria Classification System

Automated Malaria Classification System

An Internet of Things (IoT) system that provides early stage diagnosis of Malaria by utilizing smartphone with attachable inexpensive microscope using an edge computing mobile application system, with image recognition algorithm and deep learning that gives accurate counts of infected blood cells with 96% accuracy.

Authors: Wanzin Yazar (UC Berkeley), Austin Tsang (San Francisco State University)

 

 

 

Technical Award: $500

Hydration Automation

Hydration Automation

A low, cost, solar powered, small factor, smart, and sustainable system that monitor and manage water level and distribution in water tanks. The system is comprised of Sensing Units, Relay Units, and an Actuating Unit with a wireless communication subsystem between the units to transport data. A micro controller is used to gather and send the water tank level data over the wireless subsystem to the Actuating Unit which collects and analyze the data from all the tank sensors and controls valves or pumps to distribute the correct amount of water to different locations in the system when needed. The wireless communications subsystem uses a custom routing protocol atop a transport layer such as LoRa and a wireless physical layer utilizing RFM95 Radio Modules in the 915/916 MHz frequency band.

Authors: Peter Ferguson, Zach Cameron, Nicholas Kniveton, Will Tuttle (Santa Clara University).

 

People’s Choice Award: $250

Solar Energy Tracking System

Solar Energy Tracking System

A system that collect and store solar energy in an efficient way for “off-grid” application. The system uses two solar panels, six light dependent resisters (LDRs), two unipolar stepper motors, two L298 driver boards, and an ATmega328P microprocessor. The system uses the light dependent resistors to interpret the amount of light in a specific area on the system’s platform. This analog signal is then converted to a digital signal, represented by a value, ranging from 0 to 100, and is used to direct the driver boards, moving the panel to the optimum orientation. The energy collected is stored in a lithium ion battery pack for immediate or later use.

Authors: David Palmer and Janio Moreno, DeVry University

 

Some of the students’ projects in the competition were funded by the IEEE EPICS (Engineering Projects in Community Services) and students in these projects are networking with corporate and non-profit representatives to continue to design and improve projects that have immediate application in their communities.

Judd Walson joins GHTC 2019 Health Panel

 

Prof. Judd Walson, START Center, University of Washington will join the GHTC 2019 Saturday plenary panel on “Health-Related Issues in Resource Constrained Environments”

The Strategic Analysis, Research & Training (START) Center is a research consulting group established in 2011 by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and the University of Washington (UW) Department of Global Health. Since 2011, START’s expert researchers have completed more than 150 projects for clients.

Judd Walson, MD, MPH is a Professor in the Departments of Global Health, Medicine (Allergy and Infectious Diseases), Pediatrics and Epidemiology (Adjunct). He has an extensive history of conducting large observational studies and clinical trials in Africa and Asia, including ongoing studies in Benin, Burkina Faso, Malawi, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and India. Dr. Walson’s research focuses on studies of neglected tropical diseases, enteric and diarrheal disease, HIV and endemic co-infections, and their relationship to child survival and early childhood development. Dr. Walson is the Principal Investigator of the DeWorm3 Project, a large multi-country cluster randomized trial designed to demonstrate the feasibility of interrupting the transmission of soil-transmitted helminths and is the co-Principal Investigator of the Childhood Acute Illness and Nutrition Network (CHAIN). He has extensive experience in the design and implementation of observational research and clinical trials, and works closely with numerous government and non-governmental organizations. Dr. Walson has mentored over 60 post-doctoral, doctoral and masters levels trainees both in the US and overseas.

GHTC 2019 Program Guide Available

Announcing: The IEEE GHTC 2019 Program Guide and Official Schedule are now available.

Read the Welcome messages from the Chair and Program Chairs.

Check out the complementary Workshops on Thursday afternoon, the Student Poster Competition participants abstracts, the Welcome Reception and the other Special Sessions, and the plenary Keynotes and Panels.

The HAC Introduction has been moved to Friday morning: Contributing to IEEE Sustainable Development Activities Around the World

The various IEEE Smart Village workshops have been combined on Sunday Morning.

We have added Friday evening reception with an Energy Panel with participants from IEEE Smart Village. Check out their exhibit in the Northwest Ballroom.

Finally thanks to the Organizing Committee and the Program Committee and Reviewers for all their hard work in bringing you IEEE GHTC 2019.

 

IEEE Smart Village Session at GHTC 2019

 

IEEE Smart Village (ISV) is an IEEE program that supports the world’s energy-impoverished communities by providing a comprehensive solution combining renewable energy, community-based education, and entrepreneurial opportunities. ISV provides seed-funding to carefully selected community entrepreneurs based upon a credible business plan that will impact significant number of people with electricity, education and small enterprise development. See https://smartvillage.ieee.org/

There will be an introductory session on ISV on Sunday, October 20 from 8:30am-noon.

How to get engaged with IEEE Smart Village (ISV) as a volunteer, ambassador or entrepreneur

Moderator: Robin Podmore, Co-Founder IEEE Smart Village

Members of the IEEE Smart Village Steering committee will provide guidance on:

(1) How to volunteer on one of the ISV Committees: Technology, Education, Fund Development, Marketing, Operations
(2) The role of ISV Ambassadors and the application process
(3) How to write a proposal and receive funding as an ISV Entrepreneur

The format will be a workshop with some presentations.

 

Welcome Reception @ GHTC 2019

 

The GHTC 2019 Young Professionals & Welcome Reception and Poster Awards will be on Thursday, October 17, staring at 7pm, following the Student  Poster Competition. (Tickets required)

The Reception will feature Carrie Smith of Physio-Control company. She will speak on her activities and experiences in humanitarian technology, in biomedical and energy poverty applications.

Speaker Biography:

Carrie Ann Smith is an Electrical Design Engineer at Physio-Control (now part of Stryker). She works to enhance state-of-the-art medical technology. She completed her undergraduate degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering with a minor in computer science (Magna Cum Laude) from Seattle University, where she served as the chair for Tau Beta Pi the engineering honor society, president and charter member of IEEE HKN honor society, and chair of IEEE.

She served as an Electrical/Computer Engineering advisor for a University of Washington mechanical engineering senior design team to help develop a novel insulin-delivery pump for patients with low acuity, while in her senior year. She has volunteered with KiloWatts for Humanity to help fight energy poverty in rural villages for two years.

Recently she traveled to the Chalokwa and Munyama villages in Zambia, Africa to implement an updated data acquisition system she helped build over the previous year, which provides remote access and monitoring of the power system. She has participated in key research at the University of Arizona centered around autonomous ground vehicles and cognitive radio, where she investigated the implications of millimeter wave high-frequencies particular to automotive radar.

Date & Time: 7:00-9:00 PM, Thursday, October 17
Room: Northwest Ballroom

TICKETS REQUIRED: GHTC 2019 attendees see https://ieeeghtc.org/registration/

Check out our other Special Sessions here.

 

Welcome from Program Chairs

 

Welcome Message from the Program Chairs

The Program Committee welcomes you to the 9th IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference. We are excited about this year’s conference and believe it will help advance technology for the betterment of society.

In the last 8 years, GHTC has established itself as the main conference on humanitarian technology in the US. People from all over the world have gathered every year to learn, present, and discuss new ways to use or develop technology to help impoverished populations. The Program Committee has worked hard this year to maintain the tradition. We have developed an international program with keynote speakers, panels, paper presentations, and workshops from across the spectrum of humanitarian engineering and technology.

We have accepted over 140 papers covering several of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. We will have parallel sessions in Health, Energy, Education, Agriculture, Connectivity, Water, Disaster Mitigation, and Sustainable Development.

We will have two plenary panels, one on “Disaster Recovery, Disadvantaged Communities and Displaced People” on Friday morning, and one on “Health-Related Issues in Resource Constrained Environments” on Saturday morning. In addition, we will three keynote speakers:

  • Neil Sahota, Chief Innovation Officer, University of California, Emerging Technologies Research & Policy Institute
  • Thomas Coughlin FIEEE, President of IEEE-USA and President, Coughlin Associates
  • Tess Russo, Portfolio Lead and Research Scientist at Global Good

There will be plenty of opportunities for networking during the breaks, lunches, and receptions. Please use these opportunities to enhance your personal and professional growth, network, and learn about new projects. We hope you enjoy the conference!

 

Silvia Figueira, PhD
Program Chair

Henry Louie, PhD
Technical Program Chair

 

Welcome to GHTC 2019

Welcome from the Chair

A Cairde,

Céad Míle Fáilte romhaibh go léir to the 9th annual IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference hosted by IEEE Region 6, Seattle Section and IEEE Society on Social Implications of Technology, Technical Co-Sponsored by IEEE-USA, IEEE Consumer Electronics Society, IEEE Engineering Medicine and Biology Society, IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society, IEEE Power and Energy Society and IEEE Smart Village, with Global Good and IEEE Humanitarian Activities Committee as Patrons.

IEEE GHTC brings together stakeholders from around the world sharing a common interest in addressing societal challenges at home and abroad. Supporting achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), GHTC provides a platform for researchers, technologists, engineers, policy makers and practitioners to share knowledge and experiences, build capacity and facilitate relationship building.

This year’s program features plenary panels focused on “Disaster Recovery, Disadvantaged Communities and Displaced People” and “Health-Related Issues in Resource Constrained Environments”. This is complemented by parallel tracks showcasing activities in Energy, Health, Agriculture, Connectivity, Education, Disaster Mitigation, Water and Sustainable Development.

We have extended the duration of the Plenary Panels, not just to allow more time for discussion but also for delegates to share personal experiences and insight. We are building on the participatory workshop sessions introduced last year through the introduction of a number of Unconference Sessions in the program, allowing delegates to influence topics and issues to be discussed, and share expertise.

Lunches and social events will provide opportunities for delegates and presenters to cluster at specific tables dedicated to discussion and knowledge sharing in specific thematic areas. Please take advantage of these opportunities – all of us have knowledge and experiences to share as well as lessons to learn.

Keynote speakers this year include Neil Sahota, Chief Innovation Officer, University of California (Emerging Technologies Research & Policy Institute), Irvine; Tom Coughlin, IEEE-USA President; and Tess Russo, Portfolio Lead and Research Scientist at Global Good.

On Thursday, there are several special events open to all conference delegates:

  • Half-day Workshops (IoT and AI architecture for humanitarian services, Applied Machine Learning for Social Good and Fundamentals of Off-Grid Electrical Systems)
  • Student Poster Competition
  • Young Professionals Reception

On behalf of the Conference Committee I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this year’s conference – in particular the experts who volunteered their time to provide constructive, actionable feedback to improve the quality and impact of papers in the conference proceedings. Please take the opportunity during and after the conference to share your ideas of how we should continue to innovate as we start preparing for the 10th anniversary of GHTC in 2020.

 

Prof. Paul M Cunningham
Chair, IEEE GHTC 2019
Dublin, Ireland