Anisha M. Apte
In this first “COPE Corner” column of 2023, the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society (AP-S) Committee on Promoting Equality (COPE) is pleased to share the progress that it has been making and a recap of the journey so far. The COPE chair, Prof. Weng Chew, scheduled a Zoom meeting, on 3 November 2022, with the committee members to have a brainstorming session for COPE project topics and ideas for next year and to discuss ideas as to how COPE can be instrumental in providing Internet access to the remote villages of the world. Figure 1 shows the attendees of the COPE Zoom meeting.
Figure 1. The COPE Zoom meeting attendees.
Editor’s Note
With the beginning of the new year 2023, let us begin by taking a recap of the activities, and projects carried out under COPE and the vision for the coming year.
The AP-S is one of the IEEE Societies with the most knowledge of wireless communication hardware, while the IEEE Communications Society may have more software knowledge. The IEEE Photonics Society has lots of knowledge of wired connections using fibers, and the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) has lots of knowledge in this area and can focus on microwave circuits. We can collaborate with these Societies to address this Herculean task.
After opening remarks from Prof. Chew, a quick overview of recent AP-S Chapter Activity Committee (CAC)/COPE/Special Interest Group for Humanitarian Technology (SIGHT) activities, the AP-S COPE website was presented by Dr. Anisha Apte. Since the inception of AP-S COPE, we have sponsored several projects for underserved students, ranging from middle school to universities and in several IEEE Regions, including China, Pakistan, and India, in Region 10; Europe, in Region 8; the United States, in Regions 1–6; Canada, in Region 7; Africa, in Region 8; and so on. Many of the projects and events and their progress are reported through the “COPE Corner” column to motivate Chapters worldwide to get involved in the activities of COPE/SIGHT/CAC.
The COPE projects that were reviewed/funded give a glimpse of how the COPE agenda is being addressed in all Regions globally, with the involvement of local Chapters working with industry and other organizations to serve communities in the most unique ways. Many times, it is more impactful to combine CAC/COPE/SIGHT activities so that Chapter officers’ travel can be covered by the CAC, due to limited budgets, and COPE projects can receive full funding. Another notable impact that CAC Chair and COPE Vice-Chair Dr. Ajay Poddar has pointed out is that COPE projects involving college students have already helped with membership growth and retention among AP-S student members.
The COPE website has been functional and regularly updated by Jose Schutt-Aine. Please visit http://aps-cope.org. A list of “COPE Corner” columns published in IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine during 2021–2022 can be found in the following and on the website:
Dr. Avimanyou Vatsa gave a presentation about the COPE project “Early Detection of Melanoma Skin Cancer,” which was carried out at Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU), in the IEEE North Jersey Section. The project involved female high-school students from the local area. Dr. Alfredo Tan gave a brief presentation about student activities promoting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education that involve middle school girls and, thus, local communities and IEEE Sections, with results reported to the IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference. He shared a brief video depicting the efforts of FDU in this direction.
Dr. Poddar and Dr. Jawad Siddiqui (AP-S SIGHT chair) discussed how COPE and SIGHT projects address underserved communities by engaging, mentoring, and motivating young students toward STEM education, which can be accomplished in collaboration with the IEEE Humanitarian Activities Committee (HAC) and IEEE sister Societies. Dr. Poddar informed us about the AP-S/MTT-S-sponsored IEEE Microwave, Antennas, and Propagation Conference in Bangalore, India, from 12 to 16 December, 2022. During the conference, a SIGHT/COPE event on 12 December and COPE Chapter event on 15 December were expected to draw 300-plus students.
Prof. Chew would like to further discuss how the AP-S can contribute to the use of wireless technology for the developing world. Dr. Alebel Arage presented a report from the IEEE Power Africa Conference that took place in Kigali, Rwanda. Arage also gave a presentation representing AP-S COPE. He pointed out that AP-S COPE-supported projects need to be promoted to support underserved communities in Africa by developing wireless technology-based community services for health centers, schools, and community centers in remote areas where power grids and communication network services are not available. Arage also visited Wollo University, Kombucha, Ethiopia, on 30 August 2022, to promote IEEE membership and local Chapter formation in the country and gave a presentation (Figure 2) for lecturers in the electrical engineering faculty on
Figure 2. Arage (right) delivers his presentation at Wollo University.
Arage is working with Dr. Poddar to form a new AP-S Chapter to support COPE projects for the benefit of local members.
The IEEE Photonics Conference was held from 13 to 17 November 2022, in Vancouver, BC, Canada. Dr. Poddar (AP-S COPE cochair), Dr. Siddiqui, and Dr. Rod Waterhouse (AP-S Industrial Initiatives and Listing Committee chair) discussed industrial collaborations and SIGHT initiatives as well as the need for the formation of a new AP-S Vancouver Chapter for supporting AP-S COPE project activities in Region 7 (Figures 3 and 4).
Figure 3. From left: Dr. Poddar, Dr. Waterhouse, and Dr. Siddiqui at the IEEE Photonics Conference.
Figure 4. Dr. Waterhouse and Dr. Poddar at the IEEE Photonics Conference.
Lauren Mecum, community outreach and development manager, IEEE Photonics Society, and Natalia Estrada, assistant vice president of STEM outreach, IEEE Photonics Society, organized the STEM Outreach Luncheon at the IEEE Photonics Conference, on 15 November 2022 (Figure 5). Estrada is an optical engineer in the aerospace industry and part of the Future Technologies team at Mynaric. Mecum is an advocate of science communication for children and the general public. She has an active role in designing workshops, talks, and activities for training and outreach targeting families, schools, teachers, and students. With them, Dr. Poddar (HAC Inter-Society Working Group chair) discussed AP-S COPE projects supporting STEM outreach activities targeting underserved communities worldwide.
Figure 5. From left: Mecum, Estrada, and Dr. Poddar at the IEEE Photonics Conference.
At the IEEE Photonics Conference, Dr. Poddar and Dr. René-Jean Essiambre (IEEE Photonics Society president), discussed inter-Society collaboration for COPE initiatives and the formation of new AP-S Vancouver Chapter to support COPE projects (Figure 6).
Figure 6. Dr. Essiambre (left) and Dr. Poddar (right) discuss inter-Society collaboration for COPE initiatives and the formation of a new AP-S Vancouver Chapter.
In the face of worry and anxiety caused by COVID-19, many members envision a new normal with a better future than simply returning to the old status quo. This could mean a great deal for members’ interactions because in-person events and social events are transitioned to virtual and hybrid modes. The bigger challenge is addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion issues in remote areas where inadequate electrical power supplies and Internet connectivity limit COPE activities.
In many of our professional relationships, we search for networking and to share know-how to address humanitarian challenges, although many people find that this has been difficult to sustain in recent years, due to the pandemic and conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, impacting economies and new job opportunities. With underrepresented communities hit the most, we bring mixed feelings into our interactions with AP-S Chapters globally, and this is simply the reality. Penetrating to the last miles (unconnected parts of the world) and offering engagement can turn into a tough challenge without solid support from local volunteers. Dr. Poddar has been a great help in establishing connections with underrepresented communities, supporting COPE projects for improving people’s quality of life and motivating STEM education. This should be a continuing and dynamic process that includes collaboration with industries, local governments and leadership, local Chapters, and IEEE sister Societies. More than a dozen COPE projects have been awarded worldwide to address inequality issues involving female students.
AP-S COPE aims to fund projects that provide good use of IEEE expertise and exhibit a strong technological component, with clear engagement with the community, indicating that a proposed solution is both desired and feasible. Projects should have established relationships, ideally documented, with stakeholders and implementation with a clear, detailed, and credible project assessment matrix, project implementation plan, and budget. Teams should demonstrate experience to credibly execute a project, identify and address potential risks, and produce a tangible impact. If a proposal misses the mark on two or more of these areas, it might not be ready for funding.
COPE is prioritizing immediate poverty mitigation and inequality reduction through the following project areas:
Project progress reports must be submitted to the AP-S, including the utilization of funds, at the end of each calendar year. Expense vouchers should be submitted as supporting documents for audits. A spreadsheet, “APS COPE Project Budget Template 2023,” should be submitted for budget proposals during the application process, and an expense report should be supplied when projects are complete. Fund utilization should be clearly indicated. Each AP-S Chapter/Joint Chapter/Student Branch Chapter may submit multiple proposals. Proposals are subject to review and scrutiny, and the total project funding will not exceed US$3,000 for any calendar year. For additional funding, Chapters are encouraged to submit proposals SIGHT and CAC.
AP-S Chapter officers/members can fill out and submit the 2023 special project funding request form through the online submission link at https://forms.gle/XwDUrDtZSkYojE35A. The deadline is 31 March 2023. If Google Forms is not available in your Region, you may use “AP-S Special Project Request Form MS Word:: PDF,” found on the IEEE AP-S website. Chapter officers can submit write-ups, photos, and videos of COPE events to be uploaded to the COPE website and published in the “COPE Corner” column.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MAP.2022.3226372