• For the Woman Champion: Powering Impact award:

Carol Dahl, former executive director of The Lemelson Foundation – whose mission is to use the power of invention to improve lives. Under her leadership, the Foundation focused on enabling the next generation of inventors and invention-based enterprises to develop products and businesses that underpin the economy and solve big problems in the U.S. as well as for the poorest populations in low- and middle-income countries. In addition, the Foundation’s Oregon regional initiative strengthened the invention ecosystem in the state by providing K-12 invention education programs and resources for emerging entrepreneurs.

Carlotta M. Arthur, director of The Henry Luce Foundation’s Clare Booth Luce Program for Women in STEM, presented the award to Dahl. 

• For the Academic Ally award:

The Pennsylvania State University College of Engineering – an acknowledgment of the important role that partnerships play in the future of engineering and the next generation of leaders and the visionary academic institutions like Penn State that are pushing the boundaries of pedagogy and research. Through its continued partnership with ASME and E4C programs and a shared mission to train the future workforce together, the Penn State College of Engineering has demonstrated a commitment to social innovation with meaningful programs and faculty that is encouraged and supported. The latest Impact Project between E4C and Penn State assesses the barriers preventing effective application of housing solutions for improving flooding resilience for housing within the context of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Kendra Sharp, head of the National Science Foundation’s Office of International Science and Engineering, presented the award to Justin Schwartz, the Harold and Inge Marcus Dean of Engineering at Penn State, and Esther Adhiambo Obonyo, associate professor of engineering and director of the Global Building Network.

• For the Impact Driver award:

The Autodesk Foundation – supporting the innovators and entrepreneurs tackling the world’s most pressing challenges through design and engineering. The Autodesk Foundation’s investment in the E4C fellowship helped double the cohort from 25 to 50 fellows. Recent projects include designing homes in Rwanda to mitigate poor ventilation, cataloging water tower designs for relief sites around the world, and designing greenhouse airflow for converting organic waste into insect-based protein for animal feed.

John Wain, senior shelter cluster coordination officer for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), presented the award to Joe Speicher, executive director of The Autodesk Foundation .