Whether through collaborations with international organizations or technologists across the globe, IEEE intensified its efforts to take part in meaningful activities that can help shape the world. Additionally, there was a deliberate effort to reach out to underrepresented communities, helping forge a sense of contribution to our core purpose of advancing technology for the benefit of humanity.
Leading The Conversa
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the digital divide like never before. Those who had broadband access thrived while those without meaningful access struggled.
IEEE is working side by side with other key stakeholders to help bridge this accessibility gap. One example of this effort is IEEE’s growing partnership with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a U.N. agency that helps set policy related to information and communication technologies.
(Source: UNESCO)
(Source: UNICEF)
In 2023, the IEEE Humanitarian Technologies Board and Special Interest Group on Humanitarian Technology (SIGHT) funded numerous life-changing programs across the globe.
Our key projects include:
IEEE Argentina Section set up a community garden, cheese production operations and refrigeration system to empower residents to engage in new income-generating activities.
IEEE Ecuador Section used its funding to implement a smart irrigation system to improve land production of crops, benefiting more than 350 people in the rural community of Cruz Loma.
IEEE Malaysia Section designed and deployed an integrated solar lighting and camera surveillance system for a fishing village of 200 residents, to allow better understanding of crocodiles and their behavior in the area.
IEEE Uganda Section installed a solar system comprised of six solar panels, two batteries, one inverter and a charging port to provide sustainable and clean energy to the Nyakinengo Health Centre, directly benefiting over 500 current patients and their families.
IEEE President Saifur Rahman spoke at prominent climate events in 2023, including COP28 in the United Arab Emirates, EU Green Week, European Sustainable Energy Week and the European Parliament in Brussels. Such engagements highlight how IEEE’s global community of engineers and technologists is using its expertise to help address critical climate change issues.
IEEE Day, which celebrates the first time engineers and IEEE members gathered to share their technical ideas in 1884, inspired more than 700 worldwide events across all 10 IEEE Regions.
IEEE Sections Congress, the triennial gathering of IEEE Section leadership, brings together hundreds of delegates from all 10 IEEE Regions to network, learn and collectively shape the future of IEEE. Sections Congress 2023, held in Ottawa, Canada, centered on the theme of “Enabling Leaders to Build a Sustainable Future.” The event featured a Climate Change Pavilion highlighting what each section is doing to combat global warming.
IEEE members, employees and local communities joined together for the second annual IEEE Education Week, designed to highlight the diverse educational opportunities available through IEEE that help advance technical careers.
IEEEXtreme is a global challenge in which thousands of teams of IEEE student members—advised and proctored by an IEEE member—compete in a 24-hour time span to solve a set of real-world programming problems. This year’s IEEEXtreme 17.0 set new participation records, with more than 7,000 team registrations.
