Celebrating Women in Engineering

In 2023, more women than ever are skilling, re-skilling, and upskilling across various industries.  As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, some gender gaps are also being filled through online learning.  However, gaps remain substantial in terms of representation in STEM fields – particularly in ICT and engineering.  The benefits of diversity in these fields are widely acknowledged – greater innovation and better business returns.  To celebrate International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) and to encourage greater representation in this field, especially as the world strives for a cleaner energy future, CWEEL is hosting a panel discussion featuring several women from around the globe who pursued and have been thriving in the engineering profession.

Event Details:
Date: June 23, 2023
Time: 9:30 AM Eastern
Register Here

Panelist bios:

Hadas Webb has 20+ years of experience in engineering, energy analysis, and leadership. Ms. Webb joined Browning the Green Space as a Deputy Director in January 2022, where her primary responsibilities include fundraising, small business development, and contract facilitation.  Previously, as Managing Director of Analytics for Cimetrics, her responsibilities included planning and integration of new products and offerings, leading a team of senior analysts, and overseeing the client experience to ensure client goals such as energy reduction, reliability, wellness, occupant comfort, and customer satisfaction are successfully met. Formerly, as a Senior Analyst, Ms. Webb was directly responsible for energy analysis of over 8 million square feet of facilities throughout the United States. Prior to joining Cimetrics, Ms. Webb worked as a Building Automation Construction Manager at Partners Healthcare, where she was responsible for managing control system projects and developing a building automation master plan for Massachusetts General Hospital.  Hadas received a B.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an M.S. from Carnegie Mellon University, both in Mechanical Engineering and is a Certified Energy Manager (CEM).

Laurie Navarro has nearly 40 years of experience in clean energy leadership, program management, and relationship building with private and public sector partners and stakeholders. Laurie has worked in technology and market assessment, project development, facilitation of access to financing, monitoring and evaluation, policy analysis, formulation of business models, and capacity building. She is widely known and highly respected in the Philippine energy sector, having been part of the core team of the Philippine DOE’s first initiatives to pursue RE development. She has worked directly with financial institutions, utilities, and private companies and has an excellent working relationship with relevant units within the DOE. She is also highly regarded across other Southeast Asian countries, having been involved in various regional RE and energy efficiency projects funded by various international donors.  Laurie was the Chief of Party of the USAID Alliance for Mindanao Off-Grid Rural and Renewable Energy or AMORE 3 Program, which provide access to clean energy for un-electrified households in remote off-grid communities in Mindanao.  She led the development and successful pilot of innovative commercial approaches to rural off-grid electrification using solar PV products and micro hydropower systems, resulting in the electrification of nearly 10,000 households using renewable energy.  Laurie holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines.

Eunice Biritwum is a seasoned senior-level executive in the electric utility and related industries in Ghana and the US. She has close to 30 years of experience, including the leadership of a private power generating company as CEO; development and implementation of power infrastructure projects in Ghana; various management roles in electric utility operations in the USA; and new product development and marketing and sales of generator sets to the utility and heavy industrial business sectors worldwide as global marketing manager.  Since 2020, she has led power planning work in Ghana under the USAID-funded West Africa Energy Program, a regional program that seeks to increase power supply and access to reliable and affordable grid-connected power.   Throughout her career, Eunice has been a strong advocate for women in the energy and power sectors. She was a member of the Society of Women Engineers in college and was instrumental in the creation of Women in Energy (WiE) Ghana, which was formally launched in early 2020 as a platform to promote women’s leadership in the energy sector. Eunice initially served as a technical adviser during its creation. Now that WIE Ghana has taken off, she remains an active member of the management committee. Eunice is also the chairperson of the executive committee of the Executive Women Network, which brings together senior women and female CEOs across various business sectors.   Eunice holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering and an MBA.