Alumni

Hello! My name is Greg Berger and I have a diverse background spanning the engineering, construction, and travel industries. I have a B.S. in mechanical engineering and was the engineering manager for a company that manufactures high-pressure compressors before taking a left turn and working construction in Australia, and eventually in the travel industry as a tour guide for several years. I have been fortunate enough to visit many countries and have seen first-hand the importance of water and electricity in improving lives. I wanted to find a way to combine my engineering background, love of travel, and drive for a fulfilling and meaningful career, and the MDE program was a perfect fit. I love doing hands-on work and hope that through this program I will gain the knowledge to help with the implementation of water and power systems in developing countries. In my free time I love to travel, hike, surf, and other outdoor activities!

What place do you call home? Maryland

Undergraduate study: Central University of Finance and Economics, finance major Graduate study: Master of Engineering – IEOR, Berkeley; Master of Development Engineering – Healthcare Transformations, Berkeley Future job: financial industry and healthcare related fields

What place do you call home? China

Since getting my BS in Environmental Engineering in 2019, I worked at a civil engineering firm in drainage design and stream restoration. I came back to school because I really enjoyed the experiences I had with WASH projects for Engineers without Borders and wanted to work in the space of doing good for others again.

What place do you call home? Denver, Colorado

Hi! I'm Eleanor Xiafei Chin. Born in Changzhou, China (that's a small town near Nanjing), I was adopted into a half-Chinese, half-Caucasian family. I was homeschooled from age five until I graduated high school and in college, I majored in East Asian Languages. Definitive times for me were studying abroad in Taipei, Beijing, and Seoul, and backpacking through the Southeast Asia region. I'm a Protagonist/Commander personality blend on the Myers-Briggs test and a 5 sub 3 on the Enneagram. My career so far has been anything BUT linear--I interned at a translation house, I was involved in Startup Grind, I taught in a Montessori preschool, I taught English and Japanese, I worked in retail, I was a film production assistant, I completed a fellowship for community-based impact, I planned and managed all-digital hackathons between China and Singapore, and most recently, I managed people operations for an AI startup that detected respiratory diseases. Admittedly, I'm super-duper curious about everything under the sun, but right now, I'm really interested in the financing of innovation to solve wicked problems--in the words of Kara Logan Berlin, founder and CEO of Harvest, if you want to change the world, you have to know how to pay for it. I also get excited about implementing the amazing ideas and interventions that are already existing--in the words of Monsieur Jacques, from Red Sails to Capri, "Men dream, and then they run to catch up with their dreams. That is progress…We need both kinds of men--the dreamers and those who try to make the dreams come true."

What place do you call home? I'm an East Bay Area native, I lived very happily in Taipei and Beijing. Lived less happily in Seoul for some time.

Hello there! My name is Abigail Chin. I recently graduated with a B.S. in Computer Science in 2018 and worked as a software engineer for the past couple of years. While I enjoy building mobile applications and discovering new technologies, I firmly believe empathy should be at the core of everything I do. Whether that be mentoring high school students, starting small scale charities and fundraisers, or joining this program, I am excited about the intersection of social change and new technological inventions. I am particularly intrigued by AI/Machine Learning and the possibilities it holds to impact lives.

What place do you call home? The Greater San Francisco Bay Area, California

I'm a curious, passionate, and hardworking individual who's always excited to pick up new skills and explore new domains. In particular, I love to delve into topics related to the intersection of technology and society. Some topics I've researched have been humanitarian assistance and disaster response, AI/ML, clean energy, industrial processes, electric vehicles, and renewable energy microgrid systems.

What place do you call home? Still exploring, haven't settled 🙂

Dan is a problem solver who's been an entrepreneur, award-winning product developer, policy researcher, and hacker (security consultant). He specializes in systems thinking involving finance, technology, organizational design, and the software engineering and data science required to bring solutions to life. His current research and projects include: greener affordable housing, urban COVID19 recovery patterns, and designing youth unemployment solutions. In between work and sleep, he enjoys biking (dying) on large mountains, losing at board games, developing sore feet at art museums, and teaching high school students.

What place do you call home? Pleasanton, California

Brian aims to combine the Development Engineering experience with his consumer-focused strategy consulting background in transitioning to sustainable design innovation and social impact.Current areas of focus include watersanitation, and hygiene (WASH); the market's place in development; and local community engagement driving base of the pyramid strategy and innovation. Recent project involved expansion and sustainability strategy for WASH small business in Ethiopia. Brian was previously a Director at EY Parthenon in Tokyo, focused on the Consumer & Retail sector.He has led engagements with global companies in the U.S., Asia, UK, and EMEA. His cross-border experience includes growth, market entry and pricing strategy, operating model design, program management, and partner strategy. Intellectual capital topics at Parthenon included direct-to-consumer (DTC) models, digital payments, personalization, post-COVID ‘new normal’ consumer behavior, and cross-border transformations. Brian holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from the University of Arizona and MBA from IESE Business School.

I am a person who has always had a profound passion and fascination for areas requiring an analytical approach. Right from early days at school, Mathematics has intrigued me. The most challenging of all problems were my favorites and obtaining solutions to them would leave me with a sheer feeling of ecstasy. I always did and always would thrive on solving the most challenging problems with emerging technologies. With a compelling desire to excel, hard work became my second nature. My aspiration for a technical career prompted me to take up the most coveted undergraduate and graduate programs in Business Administration at Multimedia University in Malaysia. My own systematic & methodical approach towards finding a solution to any problem and doing the tasks in the right manner best suits this field. Promptly after I finished my graduate study, with the passion of gaining more knowledge about the problem-conception and human-based approaches, I have started studying Master of Development Engineering at UC Berkeley. In a world where the success of organisations is highly dependent on the use of latest technological innovations while promoting development in sustainable ways, I find myself enthused by sustainable design innovations. I am studying Development Engineering because I feel this program perfectly matches my keen interest in solving critical problems in competitive and innovative manners and ultimately in developing businesses especially in the field of my interest which is production and manufacturing where, I believe, innovation and sustainability will remain keys to success.

What place do you call home? Karaj, Iran; Oakland, California

I studied engineering in Paris, France, with a focus in business intelligence and data analytics. Curious about management, I joined my former university’s consulting firm as a project manager and its secretary general. After interning as deep learning engineer in 2019, I finally graduated. Driven by my attraction for entrepreneurship, I then undertook a series of projects, from the development of an educative mobile app to the design of an indoor aquaponics system; to finally end up as a cybersecurity analyst in a consulting firm. I have always had the chance to pursue my passion for music and the saxophone that I have been playing for more than 15 years. Whether it is in music through composition and improvisation or in engineering by solving problems, I have always been looking for creativity. Today, I am grateful to study development engineering which is contributing to fill in the missing pieces of my training towards becoming a more ethical, a more aware, and a more fulfilled engineer.

What place do you call home? Anywhere there are friends and communities I can relate to.

Formerly an elite athlete and originally from Ireland, Barry has now become an environmental scientist and development engineer who is striving to transcend conventional scientific boundaries and create new innovative solutions to address the global challenges facing sustainability and environmental protection. He has a distinct intellectual curiosity of addressing the concerns associated with the global ecological decline, and values multi-cultural and international collaboration in tackling these global challenges. Barry has a Bachelor’s in Environmental Sciences with Diplomacy in Professional Practice from the University of Ulster and is pursuing his Masters Degree at the University of California, Berkeley, in Development Engineering; specializing in Water, Energy & Environment - as a triple international scholar. Barry is a George Moore Scholar, the Finduddannelse.dk Sustainability Scholar and Blum Centre Scholar. He is the Former Climate Ambassador of Ireland and recently the Co-Founder of a global youth-led NGO called Earth Action Hub. He has also has been involved in several projects through MOCKCOP, British Trust for Ornithology and the Foundation for Environmental Education. Aside from his professional career, Barry enjoy sports, travelling and outdoor pursuits such as hiking, surfing and boating.

What place do you call home? Donegal, Ireland

I hail from the sugar bowl of India – Muzaffarnagar (state of Uttar Pradesh). For perspective, if Uttar Pradesh were a separate country, it would be the seventh most populous one in the world. As a graduate student in the Development Engineering program, I am studying about the challenges associated with low-resource settings and how designing engineering interventions can address some of them. Within this vast field, I am excited about leveraging computer vision for improving water systems, microfinance, remote healthcare and manufacturing. Besides academics, I enjoy dancing (until the mid-term results are out), running (from assignments until the deadline), playing the keyboard (bash scripts on vim included) and frequenting the UC botanical gardens (recommended!). Prior to attending UC Berkeley, I was an Associate Consultant with M.N. Dastur & Co. in the Energy and Process Metallurgy division since 2018. I have worked on projects in Sustainability (Carbon Capture and Storage) and Operations Improvement for some of the leading Iron & Steel and Oil & Gas players. During my stint at Dastur, I developed predictive models aimed at enhancing process control by leveraging machine learning techniques.

What place do you call home? India

Hi! My name is Sudeshna. After I completed my undergrad in computer science engineering, I worked in the IT industry as a technology analyst and project manager. My interests range from sustainability to digital design, creative ideation and human-centred innovation. My passion is to explore ways in which engineers can help create a healthier and sustainable community. I look forward to learn the unique blend of design thinking, computational thinking, maker culture, and business, in this Development Engineering program. In my free-time, I love to sketch portraits, practice hip-hop dancing, and learn any new sport.

What place do you call home? India

Patricia has a Bachelor of Education (Social Studies) degree and is pursuing a Master of Development Engineering (Concentration: Sustainable Design Innovations) at UC Berkeley. She is concerned about the future, committed to leading and inspiring positive change in the world, and passionate about current issues such as poverty, food sovereignty, agroecology, girl child education, climate change, and sustainability. She hopes to be the kind of researcher, educator, social entrepreneur, and development engineer twenty-first-century needs for a better world. Patricia leverages her passion to help make the world a better place for both present and future generations through quality education, leadership, mentorship, entrepreneurship, financial inclusion, Community Development and Sustainability, Social Innovation, youth empowerment and a variety of community services, projects, and volunteer activities.

What place do you call home? Ghana

Jessalynn works in transdisciplinary resource management and posthuman economics. She has extensive experience in civic engagement: Alaska governors, economic groups, non-profits and policymakers. Mostly she's into working with communities: leveraging government structures/strictures, building consensus, ID’ing funding. She calls Alaska home, where she is lucky every darn day to enjoy access to sustainable fish, game, berries, mushrooms, plants, herbs, and renewable hydro.

What place do you call home? Juneau, Alaska

I am from Ghana, West Africa. I have a background in electrical/electronics engineering and I am looking forward to use this knowledge to help solve some of the pressing problems in the healthcare sector in Ghana. I enjoy reading, watching movies and hanging out with loved ones.

What place do you call home? Accra, Ghana

Before joining this graduate program, I have an academic background in mechanical engineering and I worked in a power plant in Hong Kong as an engineer for 4 years. I am passionate about energy and its impacts on the society.

What place do you call home? Hong Kong

My undergrad is Chem. Eng. The last decade, I was working in ceramic, adhesive / glue and plastic (on-going) supporting the application of product life cycle for consumer electronic market- building electronic devices to power the IOT. Presently, at UC Berkeley, I have been focusing on sharpen my skills in entrepreneurship and product design in sustainable design It has been an incredible and stressful journey juggling between work and school but, I have been learning a lot.

What place do you call home? Bay Area

Abigail has an undergraduate degree in Biology from Middlebury College and is interested in Data Science and AI in the healthcare sector. She has an eclectic background in entrepreneurship and farming, but has since focused her efforts on machine learning for social change.

What place do you call home? California

Victor brings to the Development Engineering program a lot of experience living and working in his native Nigeria as a tech educator and software developer. With a data science background and having worked with a Nigerian startup, Victor has experience building software for large government and private institutions. Victor also has experience teaching coding bootcamps to high school students in Nigeria and enjoys exploring new modes of learning that optimize for student outcomes.

What place do you call home? Nigeria

I joined the Development Engineering program because I wanted to further explore the intersection of affordable housing and sustainable community development. I’m passionate about what we can do to shape the future of resilient cities. Previously, I earned my BS in Real Estate Development at the University of Southern California and worked with Community Development Resource Group (CD-RG) as a consultant. At CD-RG, where we provide technical assistance to private affordable housing developers and public agencies throughout California, I gained valuable experience in state financing programs and building strategies to analyze & reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Currently, I work for Mercy Housing, one of the most experienced non-profit affordable housing providers in the country. Throughout my career, I’ve had the opportunity to study and work on connecting best practices with innovative housing solutions, with a special focus on strategic public private partnerships, to create more livable communities.

What place do you call home? Los Angeles