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Hundreds come together to share ideas on next generation green technologies

July 20, 2018

More than 100 international scholars as well as industry and government leaders from the U.S. and India came together at Florida Polytechnic University this week (July 18-19) to discuss the next generation of green and sustainable technologies. The group convened in the university’s Innovation, Science and Technology Building in Lakeland, for the two-day GCET-2018 USA-India Conference, which featured an array of speakers as well as panel discussions.

Among the many presentations was one on autonomous vehicles by Dr. Rahul Razdan, a Florida Poly professor and senior director of special projects. Razdan said it can be thought of as a green technology because one of the benefits of the proliferation of autonomous vehicles would be reducing the number of cars.

“If you could get a situation where, fundamentally, there are far less cars on the road, they are scheduled in a much better way and the size of the cars are optimized for the actual trip you’re taking, overall you’ll produce much less pollution,” he said.

Razdan said Florida Poly is one of the academic leaders in the testing and verification of autonomous vehicle technology. He believes areas such as planned communities, which are prevalent in Florida, as well as theme parks and university campuses will likely see the technology roll out first since they feature low-speed and more controlled environments.

“We’ll see this gradual process where the technology gets better and improves over time, and eventually we’ll get to the point where we’re totally autonomous,” he said.

In all, the conference featured more than 20 presentations on an array of topics, including technology aimed at purifying indoor air, green nanotechnology and global emissions reduction solutions. Students from Florida Poly and Panjab University in India capped off the conference by providing results of research associated with green and sustainable technologies.

The GCET USA-India Conference was a collaborative effort by Florida Poly, Panjab University and Molekule, Inc. Additional industry participation included representatives from Firmenich and Winsome Intellectual Property Solutions.

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Dr. Rahul Razdan
Dr. Sesha Srinivasan
Green Chemistry & Engineering
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This session will demonstrate that practical risk management is for everyone, regardless of a formal program. Attendees will learn actionable and simple strategies that are easy to implement, enabling them to start immediately by focusing on their top risks to build greater operational resilience and ensure the sustained success of their auxiliary enterprises.

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Michelle Powell serves as the pioneering Risk Manager at Florida Polytechnic University, the state’s sole 100% STEM-dedicated institution. Having been with the university for nearly 11 years, Michelle transitioned from a leadership role in Admissions in October 2023 to establish and evolve the risk management function from the ground up. In this solo capacity, Michelle builds robust frameworks for our dynamic, young university, overseeing our insurance portfolio, consulting on third-party and event risks, and developing critical campus-wide training programs. Michelle has obtained the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) Enterprise Risk Management certificate and the Associate in Risk Management (ARM) and Construction Risk and Insurance Specialist (CRIS) designations. Her distinct background in mathematics and engineering, combined with extensive higher education leadership, brings an analytical and strategic approach enhancing the institution’s resilience.