Fresh elections for the India Chapter Chair
Dear India chapter members,
We identified a breach in the election procedures regarding equal opportunity for all candidates. One candidate used means for publicising its candidacy which were not available to all.
We want to remind everyone that communication about candidacies should be made exclusively through the “post” feature in the Portal, to which everyone has equal access.
Elections in your chapter will therefore be reopened and carried out in light of the above recommendation.
What happens now
- From today, 29th July, until Saturday 5th August 2023, people can use this "post" feature of the portal for campaigning.
- From Sunday 6th to Saturday 12th of August, members will be invited to vote through a new poll. During this time no campaigning will be allowed
- After the closure of the new poll the candidate who has received the most votes will be announced after validation of the MCAA ExCom
Manifestos of candidates
Srabanti Ghosh
Srabanti Ghosh presently working as Senior Scientist, Energy Materials & Devices Division, in CSIR - Central Glass and Ceramic Research Institute, Kolkata, India. She received her PhD degree in Chemistry and completed postdoctoral programs at the University of Paris SUD, France (Marie Curie Cofund, 2012-2014). She worked as GOT ENERGY TALENT Cofund Marie Curie Fellow Researcher (2019-2020) at UNIVERSIDAD DE ALCALA, Spain. Her main research interests include the synthesis, and characterization of functional materials at the nanoscale and their electrochemical properties for energy conversion devices, photocatalysts, electrocatalysts, fuel cells, and biosensors applications. She co-authored 90 publications in international scientific journals, (Nature Materials, Applied Catalysis B, Journal of Material Chemistry A, Nanoscale etc.), Book chapter-19, Book edited-05 (h-index: 38, i10-index: 77, Google Scholar Citation: 4980). Her current research work is focused on nanohybrid materials, conducting polymer nanostructures for solar light harvesting and photocatalysis.
Vishwas Lakkundi
About Myself:
I am currently Chief Data Protection Officer at Smarten Spaces - a start-up in the Hybrid Workplace Solutions domain. I was Chair of IEEE Computer Society Bangalore Chapter during 2020 & 2021.
My areas of interest include Information Security & Privacy, IoT, AI, Wireless Systems, and Cloud/Edge Computing and have 21+ years of experience in those domains.
I hold a PhD in ICT/Wireless Communications. I was a recipient of MC Postdoc Fellowships during 2009-2011 (Greece) and 2011-2013 (Italy).
Further details: https://in.linkedin.com/in/vishwaslakkundi
Major Achievements:
- Outstanding Large Chapter Award - IEEE Bangalore Section, 2021 (as Chair)
- Outstanding Chapter Award - IEEE Computer Society (Global), 2019 (as Chair-elect)
- Outstanding Large Chapter Award - IEEE Bangalore Section, 2018 (as Secretary)
Position Statement:
I would like to utilise my diverse volunteering + industry experiences for the betterment of MCAA India Chapter and hereby request you to consider me for this position & vote!
If elected, I would prioritise and implement the following activities:
- MEMBER ENGAGEMENT:
- Enhance, promote and support the interests of Marie Curie Fellows and Alumni in India
- Liaise with MCAA Board more effectively for the benefit of India Chapter & its members
- Conduct local events and boost networking opportunities on a regular basis
- Encourage and facilitate participation of India Chapter members within MCAA Working Groups & the Board
- Attract new members and retain the existing members with pro-active engagements
- COLLABORATION:
- Collaborate with other institutes / organisations (especially industry) to promote EU Research in India & to explore related opportunities
- Spread the word about MCAA within the India region
- COMMUNICATION:
- Enhance social media presence of MCAA India Chapter and its activities
- Establish a chat / quick connect medium for the benefit of India Chapter members
Sankaranarayanan Thangaraju Murugan
I am writing to express my strong interest in applying for the Marie Curie Alumni Chair position for the Indian chapter. I believe that this opportunity aligns perfectly with my academic background, research interests, and professional aspirations. Here are a few key reasons for my application:
Research Excellence: Being an alumna/alumnus of the Marie Curie program itself signifies a commitment to excellence in research and innovation. As an established researcher with a strong publication record and significant contributions in my field, I am confident that my expertise will contribute positively to the scientific community in India.
International Collaboration: The Marie Curie Alumni Chair offers a unique platform for international collaboration and networking. By joining the Indian chapter, This collaborative environment will foster the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and experiences, leading to innovative research outcomes.
Knowledge Transfer and Mentorship: I strongly believe in the importance of nurturing young talent and supporting their professional development. As an experienced researcher, I am enthusiastic about sharing my expertise and mentoring early-career scientists in India, helping them overcome challenges and achieve their research goals.
Promoting Gender Equality: Marie Curie Alumni Chairs actively promote gender equality in research. By applying for the position, I aim to contribute to the broader mission of empowering women in science and academia.
I firmly believe that my experience, expertise, and passion make me an ideal candidate for the Marie Curie Alumni Chair position for the Indian chapter. I am eager to collaborate, mentor, and contribute to the advancement of scientific knowledge and innovation in India. Thank you for considering my application.
Swati Sharma
I am a biologist, and I worked as an early-stage researcher during 2015-2018 with a research consortium called Growsperm. I was based at WWU Munster in Germany and received excellent academic and research training as part of the Marie Curie PhD program. After moving back to India in 2021, I have been involved in startup projects and research activities, I believe marie curie alumni network needs to be strengthened further in India, so that alumnis can benefit from this network for their future career progression and development. As a chair, I would like to take concrete steps in this direction.
Kashmir Singh
1. Creating a strong connect between MCAA members of India chapter and our associations with international chapters.
2. Creating awareness among students, MCAA members regarding various activities undertaken by MCAA.
3. To strengthen their research network among members of various countries.
4. To organize frequent focused group discussions, meetings and seminar involving MCAA members and other reputed scientist from various fields. This connect is missing in India Chapter of MCAA.
5. Career guidance to students and mentoring them for research towards sustainable development.
6. Identification of niche area for collaboration to meet various sustainable development goals
Ashwani Kumar Tiwari
Dr. Ashwani Kumar Tiwari is working as an Assistant Professor in the School of Environmental Sciences at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. His teaching and research areas are water resources management and GIS, hydro-geochemistry, pollution of water resources by geogenic and anthropogenic activities, groundwater-seawater interaction and aquifer vulnerability. Dr. Tiwari was a Post-doctoral researcher at the Department of Environment, Land and Infrastructure Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Turin, Italy, for around four years. He has done M.Sc. and M.Phil. in Environmental Science and completed his Ph.D. degree in Environmental Science from Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines) Dhanbad, India, in 2016. He was awarded Erasmus Mundus and Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Scholarships. He has edited three Books and published several research articles in various reputed international and national journals, and his works on respective fields are very well appreciated by many workers across the world. He has served as a reviewer for many international journals.
Surendra Kumar Yadav
I am Dr Surendra Kumar Yadav, been a MCAA member since 2014 and managing the chapter now. I have managed chapter efficiently from last 2 years. We have organized exciting workshop and event on data management. We have managed to raise the members from 340 to 378 at the moment and counting. I would like to continue for another term and organize some exciting events already planed, that never happened due to some unavoidable reasons. We are already in contact with science and technology ministry and other funding agency delegates to deliver talks and discuss the policy that affect the science advocacy and path to achieve long term career goals for current and future researchers. I have personally discussed the international relation office of the Delhi University, They are going to organize my talks in different colleges of the university to spread the significant information on Marie Curie Fellowship for future researchers. The Delhi University is the biggest university system in India having 88 constituent college that have bright students from the different parts of the country getting quality education have to achieve there long term career goals. Hope these audience will have significant number of future MCAA alumni and bright scholars. I have plans to extend it to other big Indian universities in near future. So, I need to keep the position for another term and complete the mentioned tasks. Thanks a ton for MCAA for you constant support for last term, hoping to continue with India Chapter and contribute significantly.
We are very sorry for any inconvenience.
I'm here for any further information and support you might need.
Antonino Puglisi
MCAA Community Manager