Sam Borton – Page 3 – Hunt Institute for Engineering & Humanity

December 8, 2020February 28, 2022

End of Semester Reflection Fall 2020

Whether delving into sustainable food systems, researching methods of converting waste to energy, or examining the crossroads of 3-D printing and biodegradable plastics, the Hunt Institute is constantly buzzing with solutions to bolster the resilience of the world around us. Even in this challenge-filled semester, several projects in the Institute made great strides toward this goal.

Just to highlight a few: thanks to Janta and its installation of solar panels at the Tintinto Primary and Secondary school in The Gambia, remote learning was made possible amidst the pandemic; the Resilient Shelter team completed a market analysis of low-cost seismic protection methods for urban buildings in developing countries; and the Kijiji Project team developed a proposal for sustainable fencing for a community center in Kasisa, Tanzania. In addition, the communications team continued to showcase these projects and team members with consistency and excellence.

Despite all of these resilient solutions, though, I believe what primarily shaped this semester was the resilience of the Hunt Institute team and affiliates. We did not ignore all that was happening in the world around us, but rather we pushed through together.

Many students used their wide range of skills to contribute in a variety of ways. One such student, Undergraduate Research Analyst Scott Zuo, noted that in addition to his contributions to his primary project, “helping with other tasks and projects was a great opportunity for me to grow.” Whether in the office or remotely, the team was able to gather for our town-hall style Monday Meetings, which always began with the opportunity to connect with one another via breakout rooms. We even culminated the semester with an adapted version of our annual Thanksgiving celebration, beginning with a discussion of what team members were thankful for and ending with an entertaining trivia game that lifted everyone’s spirits.

As we hit our final deadlines and approach a much-needed winter break, it is time to reflect on this past semester and look forward to the next. I feel incredibly grateful for the hard-working, connected team we have at the Institute and all the work that was accomplished, and after witnessing the way we adapted to a hybrid system of virtual and in-person, I feel confident that this team can tackle whatever challenges come our way in the future.

Sam Borton is an economics major, the Research Team Lead with Varsha, and a contributor to the Hunt Institute Digest.

To read more about the Hunt Institute’s work to develop future-focused solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems, please click here. For the latest news on the Hunt Institute, follow our social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We invite you to listen to our Podcast called Sages & Seekers. If you are considering engaging with the institute, you can donate, or sign-up for our newsletter by emailing huntinstitute@smu.edu.

March 24, 2020March 2, 2022

The Resilient Shelter Project: Phase I

The Resilient Shelter project team is excited to announce the completion of its market analysis report titled Seeking Low-Cost Seismic Protection for Urban Masonry in an Unstable Terrain. Phase I of the Resilient Shelter Project consisted of a market analysis of low-cost methods for seismic protection, specifically focusing on multi-story buildings in urban areas of developing countries. A prior blog post titled “Filling the Gap for Seismic Protection” explained more about the purpose behind the project.

With support from Marcial Blondet, Ph.D., Professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, and Ph.D. student Kostas Kalfas, Nicos Makris, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at the Lyle School of Engineering, is working diligently to formulate a solution that is safe, accessible, and suitable for residents of multi-story urban housing. Dr. Makris, Affiliate supervising the work in the report said, “Part of our role as structural engineers is the design and construction of structures that are affordable to the local society and meet acceptable performance levels at present and the years to come without compromising the ability of future generations to use them, maintain them and benefit from them.” Undergraduate Research Analyst Sam Borton and Undergraduate Project Manager JuliaGrace Walker worked with Kalfas, Dr. Makris, and Dr. Blondet to examine the low-cost seismic protection market and produce a report with their findings.

Discussing his motivation for working on the project, Kalfas said, “It is my steadfast belief that we, as the more benefitted, should always give back to society and especially to those who are not as fortunate” and that the Resilient Shelter Project gave him “the opportunity to contribute directly to the people who need our help.”

In the report, Borton and Walker summarize the existing low-cost propositions and discuss to what extent these methods are feasible for the aforementioned target population in Peru. Finding that even these “low-cost” solutions are out of reach for most of the middle-class residents of Lima, the report makes an alternate proposition. Rocking isolation offers great potential as an innovative and economical seismic protection alternative, but it has yet to be implemented as low-cost housing reinforcement. This emerging system of seismic protection could fill a gap in the market, as it may provide a sufficiently low-cost accessible manner of protecting multi-story buildings.

“After learning about the very real danger that earthquakes posed to certain Peruvian communities, as well as seismically-vulnerable communities around the globe, I was especially motivated to support Dr. Makris in this initiative,” said Borton.

As the report was finalized, the project encountered a delay brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting restrictions on international travel. It is the hope of the various collaborators on the Resilient Shelter project that progress on future phases will commence in the Spring of 2021.

Walker said of her experience with the project, “It has been exciting to work with a team that values and promotes cross-cultural and interdisciplinary relationships. I cannot wait to see what else the Resilient Shelter project can achieve.”

January 7, 2020March 2, 2022

Paul S. Krueger, Ph.D.

Paul Krueger joins the Hunt Institute as a Fellow bringing his expertise in mechanical engineering. His research interests and activities include unsteady hydrodynamics and aerodynamics, vortex dynamics, bio-fluid mechanics, bio-morphic propulsion, fluid-boundary and fluid-particle interactions, and fluid processes in additive manufacturing using a variety of materials, including degradable plastics.

Krueger received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering in 1997 from the University of California at Berkeley. He received his M.S. in Aeronautics in 1998 and his Ph.D. in Aeronautics in 2001, both from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). In 2002 he joined the Mechanical Engineering Department at Southern Methodist University (Dallas, TX) where he is currently a professor and department chair. He is a recipient of the Rolf D. Buhler Memorial Award in Aeronautics, the Richard Bruce Chapman Memorial Award for distinguished research in Hydrodynamics, the Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation (2004), and the Ford Senior Research Fellowship from SMU (2012).

Dr. Krueger’s most recent project in the Global Development Lab is the Biodegradable Plastics Project. This project aims to develop novel materials that may be used to reduce plastic waste and are versatile enough to accommodate a range of manufacturing methods including 3D printing. A key area of interest is in reducing medical plastic waste, as for instance by developing a 3D-printed biodegradable mask frame intended to be used in conjunction with surgical or cloth masks and provide the benefit of a more adequate seal to the face, while also posing a better environmental impact than most disposable PPE.

When asked about the motivation behind his impactful work, Dr. Krueger replied, “My motivation for working with the Hunt Institute springs from a desire to use engineering to help improve society and the environment we live in. Sometimes this means working to overcome problems we have created ourselves, which underscores our responsibility to do something about it.”

To read more about the Hunt Institute’s work to develop future-focused solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems, please click here. For the latest news on the Hunt Institute, follow our social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram. We invite you to listen to our Podcast called Sages & Seekers. If you are considering engaging with the institute, you can donate, or sign-up for our newsletter by emailing huntinstitute@smu.edu.

January 7, 2020March 2, 2022

Jeff Corkran

Jeff Corkran is a Fellow of the Hunt Institute that brings his industry expertise in using human-centered design and technology to discover, inform and lead product and design teams innovating in food systems, sustainability, finance, retail, healthcare and manufacturing.

Most of his recent work has been in design, strategy and operations for organizations and brands innovating or disrupting focused on sustainability and social impact, surfacing and growing positive opportunities that strengthen human-to-human and human-to-planet connections.

Some of those include the United Nations, Paul Allen’s Vulcan and the Discovery Channel, XPrize and others. He was previously VP Experience Strategy at Human Design in Boulder and ZenCash in Dallas, and was a partner in a human-centered, enterprise-focused design and development firm with offices in Dallas and Atlanta for about a decade, post-consulting, and post-agency, where he cut his teeth working on large-scale innovation projects for JP Morgan Chase, BMW, Brinks Armored, Mission Foods, large CPG and retail brands like Downy and others.

A series of inspiring moments led Jeff to pivot towards work for positive environmental and social impact with a systems thinking lens. He now draws from toolkits within design, story, and engineering to move good ideas from impossible to inevitable. Jeff now runs an impact design studio called takka, leads innovation and technology for a rapidly growing company in the organic foods retail space called Dirty Hands, and is developing new, experiential products and services for children’s mental health at The Wezmore Project. He previously led product and experience strategy at Impact Mill in Sonoma, researching, developing and launching models for increasing the potential for sustainability-centered behavior change.

When asked why he was drawn to the Hunt Institute, he replied, “Every facet of experience in life seems like it is on the verge of great change, and bursting with opportunity. If, why, and how we decide to make that change positive, equitable and just, and who we bring along on the journey is up to each of us, striving together on a deeply connected planet. If I can help make the best, most positive outcomes out of these moments for the future, for everyone and all life around us, and bring along or connect others too, then I’m doing what I am supposed to do.”

Jeff is a member of the Inclusive Economy Consortium Leadership Council at the Hunt Institute for Engineering and Humanity at SMU, is an advisory committee member and co-author on a project within Academy Health, funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, and is a former board member at the systems-focused Unschool of Disruptive Design. Jeff is an advisor to companies like Good Coworking in Dallas, and is a lead mentor at Dallas-based tech accelerator Impact Ventures. He has coached and mentored individuals and teams at SXSW, AIGA, Uncharted, HackDFW and other events, and launched several community-building events and organizations like Dallas Startupweek with small, but mighty volunteer teams.

To read more about the Hunt Institute’s work to develop future-focused solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems, please click here. For the latest news on the Hunt Institute, follow our social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We invite you to listen to our Podcast called Sages & Seekers. If you are considering engaging with the institute, you can donate, or sign-up for our newsletter by emailing huntinstitute@smu.edu.

October 15, 2018March 2, 2022

Chris Kelley

Chris Kelley is an award-winning writer with more than 35 years of experience in journalism and strategic communications.

An ardent champion of truth and getting the story behind the story, Kelley began his career as a newspaper reporter fresh out of college, working his way through the ranks of The Dallas Morning News (Dallas-based A.H. Belo Corp.) — from street reporter to city editor over the course of 27 years — and ultimately becoming the founding editor of DallasNews.com, the evolutionary step of the Dallas Morning News, as the major news operation entered the new millennium.

A relentless problem solver, Kelley, after accepting a voluntary severance arrangement from A.H. Belo Corp in 2006, formed The Kelley Group to bring his communications skills to select non-profits, humanitarian organizations and visionary corporations to expand the reach of their message effectiveness, using both traditional media and New Media formats to inspire a greater audience worldwide to take positive action on society’s challenges.

Focusing on human causes and social justice issues, Kelley is an expert in media relations and crisis communications, and through his media consultancy he has partnered with the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum, Refugee Services of Texas, SMU, the Lighthouse for the Blind (Envision Dallas), the Deaf Action Center, and Alliance for Greater Works, among other institutions that engage in what he describes as having a big difference to make but needing some help to make it more efficiently and effectively.

When asked for his motivation behind his impactful work, he replied, “At the start of every day and before sleep every night, I ask: ‘What will I do/what have I done to level the playing field for others who are unable to pursue this aim themselves.'”

As an author, Kelley has traveled the world to get the first-person accounts of those who’ve lived through the indescribable trauma of human atrocities, specifically in an effort to keep the stories of those who’ve survived the horrors of the Rwandan genocide of the late 20th Century from being buried by the passing of time. And, through the friendships he’s forged with people of all walks of life, who’ve endured monumental hardships and nevertheless prevailed to grasp their own purpose and meaning and forge their own successes, Kelley has gained an appreciation for the potential within every person and strives to present the triumph of the human spirit in all his work.

Among his works, Kelley is the author of Rwanda: 25 Years Later: A primer on the 1994 Rwandan Genocide and what’s happened since then (2019, Amazon) and I Was a Stranger: Hope for a Hidden World (2008, Brown Books).

He also served as executive producer of the DVD, JFK: Story Behind the Story, on the 40th anniversary of the JFK assassination. He is executive producer of Tragedy Over Texas: The Columbia Shuttle Disaster. And, he has also helped produce an online resource for KERA-TV and Radio, Living with the Trinity (TrinityRiverTexas.org).

Kelley is a contributing author for Demographics: A Guide to Methods and Data Sources for Media, Business, and Government (2006, Routledge).

Kelley is a graduate of Texas Christian University and is a member of both the News Leaders Association and the Dallas Press Club.

Kelley and his wife, Sheryl, live in Dallas and have raised two children who have both followed in their parents’ footsteps of living to enjoy life with meaning and purpose while striving to be servant-leaders in collaboration with others who are seeking to achieve equity and equality for all persons.

To read more about the Hunt Institute’s work to develop future-focused solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems, please click here. For the latest news on the Hunt Institute, follow our social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We invite you to listen to our Podcast called Sages & Seekers. If you are considering engaging with the institute, you can donate, or sign-up for our newsletter by emailing huntinstitute@smu.edu.

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January 29, 2018March 7, 2022

Robert Hunt, Ph.D.

Robert Hunt was born in Dallas, Texas, in 1955. After attending school in Austin and Richardson, he majored in History at the University of Texas in Austin. After completing a Master of Theology at Perkins School of Theology (SMU) he served as associate pastor of the Bethany United Methodist Church in Austin, Texas.

In 1985 he and his wife Lilian moved to Kuala Lumpur, where he taught at the Seminary Theology Malaysia and directed extension education programs. He received a PhD from the University of Malaya in 1993, focusing on Christian relations with Muslims in Southeast Asia. From 1993 to 1997 he taught and directed extension education programs at the Trinity Theological College in Singapore. From 1997 to 2004 he was pastor of the English Speaking United Methodist Church of Vienna, and an adjunct professor in Comparative Religions and International Relations at Webster University in Vienna.

Since 2004 Dr. Hunt has been the Director of Global Theological Education at the Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University. He teaches courses in World Religions, Islam, Interreligious Dialogue, Cultural Intelligence, and Mission Studies. Dr. Hunt is author of several books, including The Gospel Among the Nations, A Documentary History of Inculturation, Islam in Southeast Asia, and Muslim Faith and Values: A Guide for Christians.

A strong advocate for using digital technologies to create effective, accessible theological education Dr. Hunt created and manages the Virtual Visiting Professor™ website (http://virtualvisitingprofessor.com), which makes available the best theological teaching from the 2/3rds world to a global constituency. He also created and hosts the podcast Interfaith Encounters that explores interfaith perspectives on contemporary social issues, as well as a blog, YouTube channel, and Facebook pages by the same name.

Dr. Hunt is a certified Cultural Intelligence trainer, Associate of the Tower Center for Political Science, and Hunt Institute Fellow. He is a member of the Board of Scholars of the Journal of Interreligious Dialogue, as well as the Executive Board of the Association of Professors in Mission, the American Society of Missiology, and is editor of the ASM book series. He serves on the steering committees for the SMU Doctor of Liberal Studies and Master of Liberal Studies programs and teaches in both programs

When asked what motivates his work, he replied, “The focus of my professional life, as a teacher and pastor, has been interpretation: helping people understand one another, their history, different cultures and religions, and themselves. I believe that every person, culture, and society has something valuable to offer to others, and that we discover this through critical and appreciative study, open dialogue, and a willingness to learn.”

He has been married for 37 years to Lilian Wong Hunt, a native of Sarawak, Malaysia and has two grown children. Naomi lives with her husband and daughters in Austria and Elliott lives with his wife in Los Angeles.

He speaks Malay and German.

To read more about the Hunt Institute’s work to develop future-focused solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems, please click here. For the latest news on the Hunt Institute, follow our social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We invite you to listen to our Podcast called Sages & Seekers. If you are considering engaging with the institute, you can donate, or sign-up for our newsletter by emailing huntinstitute@smu.edu.

January 29, 2018February 9, 2021

Eric Larson, Ph.D.

Dr. Eric Larson is a Hunt Institute Fellow and an associate professor in the computer science department at SMU. He is also a member of the Darwin Deason Institute for Cybersecurity, Center for Global Health, and SMU AT&T Center for Virtualization. Dr. Larson is a founding associate editor for the journal on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable, and Ubiquitous Technology (formerly UbiComp).

His research explores the interdisciplinary relationship of machine learning and signal/image processing with the fields of security, mobile health, education, psycho-visual psychology, human-computer interaction, and ubiquitous computing. Like most academics, he has a passion for teaching and mentoring, and views research as an ideal opportunity to instruct the next generation of computer scientists and engineers. He is in a unique role, supporting cyber-security, education, healthcare, and sustainability applications via the integration of machine learning and ubiquitous sensing, and has become increasingly interested in sensing markers of health and context awareness using commonplace sensors. His research supports many healthcare, educational, and security initiatives by creating applications that (1) manage and diagnose many chronic/infectious ailments, (2) help learners master educational topics, and (3) investigate information leakage in pervasive and mobile devices. His dissertation research has also had impact in the area of sustainable resource usage, where he created algorithms for monitoring water, gas, and electricity usage using machine learning (now a commercial product).

His work has also helped to develop applications for real time cognitive load monitoring, privacy implications of smartphones, newborn jaundice screening, and lung function measurement, among others. These projects have resulted in eight patents of which six have been commercialized by various companies including Google. He has secured over $6 million dollars in federal and corporate funding that support these various initiatives. Dr. Larson has published one textbook and disseminated his research in over 50 peer-reviewed conference and journal papers, garnering more than 3700 citations. He received received his Ph.D. from the University of Washington where he was an Intel Science and Technology fellow. At UW, he was co-advised by MacArthur Genius Fellow Shwetak Patel and IEEE Fellow Les Atlas. He also has an MS in Image Processing from Oklahoma State University, where he was advised by Damon Chandler.

When asked what motivates his work, he replied, “In my work, I hope to bridge the gap between evaluation techniques from human computer interaction and machine learning research and evaluation. Too often machine learning researchers do not appropriately scope their evaluation or use iterative HCI techniques in the design of the system. Through intersecting the research in these areas, I hope to help human subjects research become more computationally technical (in terms of the modeling performed) as well as helping to assist machine learning research in becoming more adaptive and rigorous in its application.”

When he is not working, he is spending time with his wife and three wonderful children, including bike riding, making home improvements, and drinking copious amounts of coffee.

To read more about the Hunt Institute’s work to develop future-focused solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems, please click here. For the latest news on the Hunt Institute, follow our social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We invite you to listen to our Podcast called Sages & Seekers. If you are considering engaging with the institute, you can donate, or sign-up for our newsletter by emailing huntinstitute@smu.edu.

January 10, 2017March 7, 2022

Corrie A. Harris, MA, MBA

Corrie A. Harris joined the Hunter & Stephanie Hunt Institute for Engineering & Humanity in 2016. Harris has significant experience in strategic operational and programmatic excellence for organizations focused on poverty alleviation through economic development, both locally and globally. Harris has also worked across various sectors, including academia, international government relations, nonprofit organizations, entrepreneurial ventures, and for-profit institutions.

In 2017, she founded the Hunt Institute Digest where she still functions as the Editor-in-Chief collaborating with student-workers who contribute to the Digest. By 2018, Harris co-founded the Global Development Lab (GDL) with the Institute’s Executive Director, Dr. Eva Csaky, to foster innovative solutions for a resilient humanity where she functions as the Portfolio Manager. Harris used the GDL to develop the student-worker program within the Institute to embody the Institute’s mission through projects with Affiliates, industry, and in-country partners. She also took the lead on a communication and marketing strategy for the Institute by redesigning social media campaigns for impact and creating the Hunt Institute Friday Update, a weekly newsletter summarizing the past week’s work in the Institute. In 2020, she is directing the Social Enterprise program in the Hunt Institute that integrates the GDL with social entrepreneurs and social intrapreneurs where she functions as a product manager and developer.

When asked about her motivation working at the Institute, she said, “Our work goes beyond theoretical to actually addressing real-world issues. This work brings with it a unique satisfaction when I see student workers go through the program working on their projects, demonstrating teamwork, and contributing in an impactful way. I enjoy watching them develop and sharpen their professional skills for that important transition between being a college student and a professional that contributes to making the world a better place, each in their various walks of life. I am highly motivated to build, market, and grow programs that shape people in a positive way.”

In 2006, Harris was the director of Villa Familia Nicaragua (VFN), an orphanage for children in crisis in Nicaragua for three years. She directed the day-to-day operations as well as all of its strategic programs, including initiating a Coalition of Directors for collaboration in Managua, Nicaragua. With the collective knowledge of the coalition, Harris created an economic development strategy for retrofitting and expanding VFN. After this, she recruited nationally and internationally for the implementation of the development strategy. This effort was highly successful and received the highest governmental recognition from the Department of Mi Familia as the standard by which all other centers for children in crisis should be modeled.

In 2021, Harris received an MBA from Cox School of Business with a concentration in Strategy and Entrepreneurship and a focus in Marketing. In 2015, she earned a Master of Arts in Sustainability and Development from SMU’s Bobby B. Lyle School of Engineering. Her master’s thesis is titled Resilient Sustainable Development: Localized Transformational Impact to Alleviate Poverty. In 2013, Harris graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Texas at Arlington with concentrations in Economics, Sustainability, Management, and Cultural Studies as a Presidential Scholar. Her honors thesis was titled Growing global economies: An interdisciplinary perspective on sustainable economic development. She holds the level of Black Belt in the World Taekwondo Federation.

Harris volunteers at St. Andrews Methodist Church in Plano, Texas as a Sunday school liaison, was a contributing member of the Lyle Task Force and Project Llama Initiatives in 2019, a member in the SMU Women Organization & Staff Association Member, a member in the Women in Business Cox Student Organization, the co-Founder and Portfolio Manager of the Global Development Lab, income Fitness Committee Chair at Gleneagles Country Club, and serves on the SMU Faculty Club Board. Corrie and her husband Chris Harris live in Plano, Texas. They are proud parents of two children.

To read more about Hunter & Stephanie Hunt Institute for Engineering and Humanity’s work to develop future-focused solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems, please click here. For the latest news on the Hunt Institute, follow our social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We invite you to listen to our Podcast called Sages & Seekers. If you are considering engaging with the institute, you can donate to the work, or sign-up for our newsletter by emailing huntinstitute@smu.edu.