Event Review | IEEE IHTC 2021 Report & Plenary Presentations
IEEE IHTC 2021 took place from 02 – 04 December as a virtual event hosted by the IEEE UK and Ireland Section.
Originally established in Canada, IEEE International Humanitarian Technology Conference (IHTC) now rotates between Region 7 (Canada), 8 (Europe, Middle East and Africa) and 9 (Latin America and the Caribbean), focusing on sharing insights, experiences and lessons learnt from ICT for Development (ICT4D) as well as supporting achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a particular focus on sharing results related to ethical use of appropriate technologies in low resource environments.
IEEE IHTC 2021 shared insight into the application of technological innovation to address societal challenges in fields as diverse as Agriculture, Disaster Mitigation, Energy, Education, Healthcare, Supporting Integration of Refugees, and Water and Sanitation (WASH). The Scientific Program incorporated full papers, short papers and oral presentations sharing insights and results from 22 countries around the world. Workshops on Ethical Considerations in Technology Implementation and Artificial Intelligence and Rural Electrification brought together experts from a range of countries sharing experiences on these topics.
Susan Kathy Land, 2021 IEEE President & CEO; Antonio Luque, IEEE Region 8 Director (2021 – 2022); Jason Gu, IEEE Region 7 Director (2020 – 2021); Alberto Sánchez, IEEE Region 9 Director (2020 – 2021) and Maike Luiken, 2021 IEEE Vice President – Member & Geographic Activities, shared insights into how IEEE volunteers and activities are supporting ICT4Development and Humanitarian Technology engagement with communities in different regions of the world.
Watch Again | Plenary Sessions
This inter-disciplinary conference facilitated engagement and knowledge sharing by stakeholders from the public, private, education and research and societal sectors in 25 countries and raised awareness of the ethical use of technological innovation to improve quality of life and access to opportunity in local communities around the world.
IEEE IHTC 2021 Conference was hosted by the IEEE UK and Ireland Section. It was organised by volunteers from UK and Ireland Special Interest Group on Humanitarian Technology (SIGHT) and the IST-Africa Society on the Societal Implications of Technology SIGHT in cooperation with Region 8. It was technical co-sponsored by IEEE Africa Council, and the UK and Ireland Chapters of the IEEE Society on Social Implications of Technology (SSIT), IEEE Systems Council and IEEE Systems, Man and Cybernetics Society.
Links and Resources
IEEE IHTC 2021 Proceedings in IEEE Xplore
Selection of video recordings within the IEEE Societal Implications of Technology Channel on IEEE.tv
IEEE: Advancing Technology to Benefit Humanity, Kathy Land, IEEE 2021 President and CEO
Humanitarian Activities in Africa Middle East and Europe, Antonio Luque, IEEE Region 8 Director (2021 – 2022)
Region 7 2021 Humanitarian Activities and Future Plan, Jason Gu, IEEE Region 7 Director (2020 – 2021)
Innovation for Humanitarian Technologies Development in Latin America and The Caribbean, Alberto Sánchez, IEEE Region 9 Director (2021)
Advancing Sustainability – IEEE Thought Leadership & New Initiatives on Sustainable Development, Maike Luiken, 2021 Vice President – IEEE Member & Geographic Activities
