Social Change Course Series

​Course Number: CIVE 5363

Department: Civil and Environmental Engineering (CIVE)

CRN: 20898

Faculty Bio(s): Auroop R. Ganguly is a College of Engineering (COE) Distinguished Professor, the Director of Artificial Intelligence for Climate and Sustainability (AI4CaS) at the Institute for Experiential Artificial Intelligence (EAI), and the Co-Director of the Global Resilience Institute (GRI), at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. His research and teaching interests are at the intersection of climate change and water sustainability, critical infrastructures and complex systems, as well as machine learning and data sciences. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers, a Senior Member of the IEEE and a Senior Member of the Association for Computing Machinery. Ganguly has 25+ years of full-time prefessional experience spanning the private sector, a government-owned national laboratory, and academia, while he and his former PhD students have spawned two successful startups. He has a PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a B.Tech. (Hons.) from the Indian Institute of Technology in Kharagpur, West Bengal, India. Ganguly claims his current personal interests are in mythology, ancient world history, and comparative religion, playing with his 3+ year old niece who shares his birthday, and in offering study-abroad courses on climate science, engineering, and policy in emerging economies through the Northeastern University Dialogue of Civilizations program.  

Puja Das is a PhD candidate in Interdisciplinary Engineering at the Sustainability and Data Sciences Laboratory of Northeastern University in Boston, MA, where she has won the Civil and Environmental Engineering Graduate Teaching Award. As a part of her PhD, she has interned at NASA and a startup company called Capella Space Corporation in two successive summers. Her research is at the intersection of climate and water resources, remote sensing and machine learning, and hydrologic emergency and river management. She is the lead graduate student researcher in a NASA-funded project which uses machine learning and data sciences for precipitation nowcasting from remote sensing data, where she works with researchers previously at NASA and now at their own NASA SBIR-funded startup as development partners, as well as practitioners at the Tennessee Valley Authority and researchers at the US DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory as stakeholder partners. She has successfully mentored undergraduate and high-school students, co-taught undergraduate and graduate courses, and obtained an MS at Northeastern University. Das graduated from the prestigious Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) with a Bachelor’s in water resources engineering and was an instructor at a university in Bangladesh for two years.

​Course Number: ARTG 5710

Department: Art – Design

CRN: 17417

Faculty Bio:

Dr. Don Robinaugh earned his doctorate at Harvard University in 2015, where he studied clinical psychology under the mentorship of Dr. Richard McNally. He completed post-doctoral training at the University of Amsterdam and served as an Assistant Professor at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School before joining the faculty at Northeastern University as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Applied Psychology and the Department of Art + Design. His research is focused on better understanding the etiology of anxiety and traumatic stress disorders, with a particular focus on how these disorders may operate as complex systems. Through this work, he has seen how data visualization can play a critical role in shaping how we conceptualize psychological phenomena and is interested in how better data visualization practices can be used to strengthen scientific reasoning.

​Course Number: PPUA 5270

Department: Public Policy and Urban Affairs (PPUA)

CRN: 17246

Faculty Bio: Christopher Bosso is professor of public policy and politics at Northeastern University, Boston. His areas of research and teaching are in food and environmental policy. Recent books include Framing the Farm Bill: Interests, Ideology, and the Agricultural Act of 2014 (University Press of Kansas, 2017) and, as editor, Feeding Cities: Improving Local Food Access, Sustainability, and Resilience (Routledge, 2017). His 2005 book, Environment, Inc.: From Grassroots to Beltway (University Press of Kansas) received the 2006 Caldwell Award for best book in environmental policy and politics from the American Political Science Association. His newest book, Why SNAP Works: A Political History — and Defense — of the Food Stamp Program (University of California Press) comes out in October 2023.

​Course Number: HLTH 5700

Department: Public Health

CRN: 20164

Faculty Bio: Ariel Beccia (she/her) is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital. She is also a trainee with the Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders (STRIPED) and the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) Health Equity Research Collective, both of which are jointly based at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her work focuses on identifying the social and structural determinants of gender- and sexual orientation-based inequities in mental health outcomes, especially eating disorders. She is also interested in developing methods for incorporating intersectionality and other critical feminist theories into quantitative epidemiologic research. Ariel earned her PhD in epidemiology from the University of Massachusetts Medical School and a B.S. in Neuroscience with a minor in Gender & Sexuality Studies at St. Lawrence University. 

​NOTE – THERE ARE FOUR SECTIONS OF THIS COURSE PARTICIPATING IN THE SOCIAL CHANGE COURSE SERIES

Course Number: BIOT 5219

Department: Biotechnology (BIOT)

CRN: 19988, 17204, 13246, 20118

Faculty Bio(s):

Liz Frey is an accomplished professional in the pharmaceutical industry, currently serving as Director, Global Commercial Lead for Stroke and Neuropathic Pain at Biogen. With a strong focus on neurology and acute care products, Liz excels in developing go-to-market strategies and brand planning. She has a proven track record of high performance and expanded responsibilities, earning promotions throughout her career. Liz’s expertise lies in product management, market research, and strategic planning. She holds an MBA from Duke University and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and English Literature from Northwestern University. In her free time, Liz enjoys reading, traveling, photography, skiing, and volunteering at a local animal shelter.

Eduardo Sanchez is an accomplished scientist with expertise in clinical CLIA/CAP/GCP settings. As a Clinical General Supervisor and Project Manager at Northeastern University’s Life Sciences Testing Center, he leads projects, optimizes processes, and coordinates collaborations. Eduardo excels in business development, client interfacing, and technical writing. His skills include cost-benefit analysis, laboratory workflow optimization, and validation of clinical methods. He has managed NGS sequencing projects, developed pooling methods for COVID-19 testing, and worked with regulatory agencies. Eduardo’s statistical data analysis, visualization, and clinical testing abilities are exceptional. With a Master’s in Biotechnology and a Bachelor’s in Chemistry, Eduardo’s proficiency in software tools and fluency in English and Spanish further enhance his contributions.

Robert E. Schultz is a dynamic and intellectually curious professional with a wealth of experience in the life science industries. With a background as an entrepreneur and sales/marketing executive, Robert has demonstrated his expertise in various domains, including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, digital health, and eCommerce. Alongside his professional career, Robert has also excelled in academia as an adjunct professor, teaching courses in marketing, entrepreneurship, healthcare innovation, and management information systems. He has a deep understanding of pedagogical methods and has leveraged learning management systems to enhance student experiences. As the founder of Massnex LLC and Tunza, Robert has successfully driven business growth and developed innovative solutions in the healthcare sector. His passion for bridging academia, industry, government, and philanthropy has made him a respected thought leader in the field. With an MBA in International Business and a BS in International Business with a specialization in Marketing, Robert brings a diverse skill set and a global perspective to his endeavors.

Youngbin Tak is a highly accomplished professional with extensive experience in the biotechnology industry. Holding an MBA with a concentration in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from Boston University Questrom School of Business, Youngbin has excelled in project management and strategic alliances. With a background in biotechnology and biochemistry, he has made significant contributions in drug discovery research and platform biology. Youngbin has worked in reputable organizations such as PineTree Therapeutics, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical, AstraZeneca, Sanofi Genzyme, and CureMeta. He has a proven track record of implementing novel assays, managing multidisciplinary project teams, and advancing therapeutic initiatives. Youngbin is detail-oriented, a great problem solver, and possesses excellent oral and written communication skills.