WSU To Host Technology Sustainability Conference

OGDEN, Utah — Weber State University will host more than 100 scientists and engineers from around the world at the third annual Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Conference on Technologies for Sustainability (SusTech), July 30-Aug. 1.
 
In advance of the conference, a free public outreach event will be held at the Salt Lake City Library, July 29 at 6 p.m. Engineer and IEEE representative Dan Donahoe will host a panel focusing on sustainability for humanity through engineering. Panelists also will discuss Pope Francis’ recent call to curb climate change.
 
The SusTech conference was designed to explore the nature of sustainable, technological advances in areas including agriculture, energy, transportation and electronics. The goal is to promote advances in technology while reducing or eliminating dangers such as pollution, global warming, electronic waste and negative impacts to overall health. Professionals are seeking environmentally sound technology developments that meet the needs of the present without compromising the future.
 
“The Weber State engineering technology department in the College of Applied Science & Technology is committed to research efforts in the areas of renewable energy and sustainability,” said Julie McCulley, WSU electronics engineering technology associate professor. “Several faculty and students from the department will present at the conference.”
 
Keynote addresses for the conference will feature Will Bagley, a noted Utah historian who will share highlights of Ogden’s history; Michelle Poliskie, from NuSil Technology, speaking on packaging implantable electronic devices; and Wolfgang Fengler of the Coalition for Sustainable Rail.
 
The conference will hold a variety of sessions covering topics such as:
 
  • Agricultural sustainability
  • Alternative energy
  • Energy efficiency
  • Transportation electrification
  • Smart grid
  • Sustainable electronics
  • Social implications
“Of particular interest to Utahns along the Wasatch Front, July 29 also features a half-day workshop from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on ‘Fundamentals of Air Pollution,’” McCulley said. “It will be presented by Charles Stanier, a chemical and biochemical engineering professor at the University of Iowa.”
 
That evening at 6 p.m., the conference will hold a session featuring Utah Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox, WSU Associate Provost Ryan Thomas and Government Liaison for the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City Jean Hill.
 
The public is invited to register and attend the entire conference. Registration for the air pollution workshop, which includes lunch, costs $129. Registration must be completed online in advance.
 
IEEE is the world’s largest professional society with more than 430,000 members in 160 countries. Its goal is to advance technology for the benefit of humanity. It was established in 1884 in New York. Early members included Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell.
 
Ogden was chosen as the venue for this year’s conference because of its history as a well-traveled railroad hub, located near where the Transcontinental Railroad was finished at Promontory Summit, linking the two coasts of the United States for the first time.
 
SusTech 2015 is sponsored by IEEE Region 6, the Oregon and Utah Sections and IEEE-USA. Co-sponsors include the IEEE Consumer Electronics Society and IEEE Society on Social Implications of Technology.
 
For more information on IEEE and to register for the conference, visit sites.ieee.org/sustech/registration-2015. For a complete schedule, visit sites.ieee.org/sustech/conference/schedule-2015.
 
Visit weber.edu/wsutoday for more news about Weber State University.
      
Author:
Marcus Jensen, Office of Marketing & Communications
801-626-7295 • marcusjensen@weber.edu
Contact:
Julie McCulley, SusTech 2015 conference vice-chair
801-626-7267 • jmcculley@weber.edu
 
Dan Donahoe, SusTech 2015 conference chair
801-574-0767 • donahoe@ieee.org