April 2022

To complement the financial support, HAC offers educational resources and assessment tools to measure near-term and long-term impact, while providing comprehensive oversight of all funded projects to minimize overall risk and maximize global impact and member engagement. Over the years HAC/SIGHT have continually improved a project management process, which can be seen on our website.

HAC has started an exciting new chapter with the IEEE Foundation, through an allocation of US$175K from a bequest from the Estate of Jon C. Taenzer. HAC will use this to establish a new small grants program that will take place over the next three years. The program is currently in its discovery phase, but will focus on breakthroughs in aids for persons with disabilities or supporting engineers in under-developed countries. A related call for proposals is planned for later this year.

I’m very thankful to IEEE President Ray Liu for joining the opening session of the IEEE SIGHT Day global celebration. His talk was both informative and inspiring, and emphasized the importance of humanitarian technology activities for overall IEEE strategy and growth. For those who were unable to join the live session, I recommend watching the recording. As the founding chair of SIGHT Day, I’m thrilled with the lineup of events planned by the SIGHT Steering Committee (SSC) for this year’s celebration. Congratulations SSC! I encourage all SIGHT volunteers to join and benefit from the sessions.

I’m excited to share the IEEE HAC 2022 First Quarter Report. HAC has a unique value proposition for IEEE members and organizational units, and the results of many collaborations are highlighted in our quarterly reports. In the latest report, readers will see how HAC continues to engage with programs across IEEE in Technical Activities, IEEE Regions, Member & Geographic Activities, Educational Activities, and Standards. One result of the collaboration efforts is how IEEE Societies continue to invest in HAC programs, and HAC in return delivers value for the Society as a whole and its individual members - I’ll have more information on the latest collaboration to share in the next edition of the newsletter.

Finally, during my recent trip to India, I was delighted to participate in various IEEE programs organized by local Sections, leading academic institutions, and IEEE OUs. It was wonderful to have engaged with over 1,000 members through these events which provided a platform to connect and inspire local IEEE audiences to engage in various HAC/SIGHT programs. I can’t wait to see more volunteer-driven grassroot efforts emerging from these discussions in India.

I invite you to stay tuned throughout the year for future updates on how HAC is building a humanitarian technology ecosystem, both within and beyond IEEE, to benefit IEEE members interested in volunteering at the intersection of technology and sustainable development.

Stay safe and healthy,
Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan
2021 - 2022 IEEE HAC Chair

First of all, we are in the middle of celebrating the third annual IEEE SIGHT Day today, 28 April. Some activities will continue to take place over the next several days, and I invite you to visit the website and register to attend the events as you are able. Recordings will be posted to the IEEE HAC/SIGHT Youtube channel (SIGHT Day 2022 playlist) as they are available, so everyone who was interested but not able to attend can still view the sessions. SIGHT Day is an intentional time to foster a spirit of community for the global SIGHT network, increase awareness of IEEE SIGHT within IEEE, promote the opportunity to support SIGHT financially, and celebrate the impact SIGHT volunteers and Groups are making. Please join our celebrations in any way possible, and help us highlight the humanitarian technology work that HAC/SIGHT volunteers are doing for the well-being of our communities. Also, thank you to all the SIGHT Groups that planned and hosted their own activities to celebrate SIGHT Day - it was a lot of fun to see your activities and commitment to what HAC/SIGHT are doing.

Thank you to all who responded to the HAC/SIGHT call for proposals focused on pressing community needs. The HAC/SIGHT Projects team will be hard at work to review the over 140 proposals submitted over the course of the next month or so, and to make sure that each and every applicant receives helpful feedback regarding their application.

To all, I extend my warmest greetings and best wishes for a rewarding month to come.

Yours sincerely,
Lwanga Herbert
2021 - 2022 IEEE SIGHT Chair

FEATURED STORIES

2022 IEEE SIGHT Day Celebration

IEEE SIGHT Day is today - 28 April! This annual event is held to foster a spirit of community for the global SIGHT network, increase awareness of IEEE SIGHT within IEEE, promote the opportunity to support SIGHT financially, and celebrate the impact SIGHT volunteers and groups are making.

Some events have already taken place, and those sessions can be found on the HAC/SIGHT channel on Youtube. Other activities will take place tomorrow through 3 May, such as a SIGHT Group Social, the first-ever SIGHT Awards ceremony, the SIGHT Day trivia challenge, and a session with IEEE Women in Engineering. See the SIGHT website for more information.

Thank you to all the SIGHT Groups that planned and hosted their own activities to celebrate SIGHT Day! Please remember to report your Group’s activities using the vTools events platform, so SIGHT leadership can better understand the reach of this year’s events.

IEEE HAC First Quarter 2022 Report

HAC’s quarterly reports are written to convey significant IEEE HAC achievements throughout the year and facilitate greater collaboration across IEEE so that more members can take part in high impact humanitarian and sustainable development opportunities. See the first report of 2022, in addition to past reports, on the HAC website.

HAC/SIGHT Events in India

During his time in India, HAC Chair Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan attended five HAC/SIGHT events organized by various IEEE entities. The events covered topics such as: leveraging opportunities provided by HAC to inspire, connect and engage local volunteer volunteers in HAC/SIGHT programs; inaugurating a new SIGHT volunteer resource portal; advancing artificial intelligence-driven social innovations; and even included a survey of local communities. For more information on the events, please visit the SIGHT blog.

HAC/SIGHT PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

Implementation of Hybrid Classroom for SPM Candidates during COVID-19 Pandemic

A team of volunteers from the IEEE Malaysia AP/MTT/EMC Joint Chapter used IEEE HAC/SIGHT Projects funding to prepare classrooms in local secondary schools for a hybrid teaching arrangement, with some students attending in person and others attending via live-video technology. 

SIGHT GROUP CORNER

Welcome to the newest SIGHT Groups!

• Algeria Section SIGHT Group - Algeria, Region 8
• H S Sciences & Technologies H Sousse Student Branch SIGHT Group - Tunisia, Region 8
• YMCA University of Science & Tech - Faridabad Student Branch SIGHT Group - India (Delhi Section), Region 10

H S Sciences & Technologies H Sousse Student Branch SIGHT Group

GET INVOLVED WITH IEEE HAC/SIGHT

Important Dates & Upcoming Virtual Events

• 28 April - IEEE SIGHT Day
  
• 29 April - IEEE SIGHT Group Social
  
• 29 April - IEEE SIGHT Awards Ceremony
  
• 3 May - Sharing Volunteer Experiences with IEEE WIE & IEEE HAC/SIGHT
  
• May/June - HAC/SIGHT Projects funding decisions made regarding submissions to the call for proposals
  

Visit the HAC/SIGHT calendar for more humanitarian technology events and activities (all virtual for now).

Support IEEE SIGHT

Your donation of any amount to the IEEE SIGHT fund of the IEEE Foundation will help form the IEEE sustainable development leaders of the future and incubate projects that support IEEE’s mission of advancing technology for the benefit of humanity in communities around the globe.

HAC/SIGHT Education Resources

See the free HAC/SIGHT resources on the IEEE Learning Network (ILN) and SIGHT website to equip participants with a basic understanding of humanitarian technology and sustainable development topics.