2017: Speaker Profiles

Nada Marie Anid, Ph.D.
Dean, NYIT School of Engineering and Computing Sciences

Nada Anid, Ph.D., is the first female dean of the NYIT School of Engineering and Computing Sciences. In this role, she oversees nearly 100 faculty members and approximately 3,500 graduate and undergraduate students at campuses in Manhattan and Old Westbury, N.Y., Vancouver, Abu Dhabi, and Nanjing, China. Anid is among the first engineers to study the role of vitamin B12 and other organometallic coenzymes in the dechlorination of important toxic molecules such as carbon tetrachloride and polychlorinated biphenyls. Her current research is in the fields of renewable energy, sustainability, emerging technologies, engineering education, economic development, and entrepreneurship.

Anid embraces NYIT's forward-thinking and applications-oriented mission and serves on the boards of several professional organizations. She recently established NYIT’s Entrepreneurship and Technology innovation Center and is working on several strategic partnerships with the public and private sector. Anid was one of the winners of the 100 Inspiring Women in STEM Awards in 2015 by Insight into Diversity magazine and three times named one of the top 50 women in business on Long Island by Long Island Business News. She also received the 2010 LISTnet Diamond Award in recognition of her significant contributions toward the advancement of women in technology on Long Island as well as for her professional achievements in the technology field. Anid holds leadership positions in the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the American Society for Engineering Education, and the New York Academy of Sciences, among others.

She earned her Ph.D. in environmental engineering from the University of Michigan, and her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemical engineering from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH-Stockholm).

Christopher A. Cavanagh
PE, Principal Program Manager, New Energy Solutions, National Grid

Christopher Cavanagh is responsible for developing programs to modernize National Grid’s US natural gas distribution services. He was recently responsible for implementing a process for the development of new electric and gas technologies for customers to support National Grid’s goals. Cavanagh has 29 years of experience in product development at National Grid and its predecessor companies. Cavanagh previously managed research programs in the areas of alternative fuel vehicles, advanced heating and cooling, and distributed generation, including fuel cells. He was a senior engineer with the New York architect-engineering firm Gibbs & Hill.

Cavanagh is a licensed professional engineer and a Member of the American Society of Heating Ventilating and Air Conditioning Engineers. He is a graduate of Brooklyn Tech HS and holds a bachelor’s of engineering degree from the Cooper Union, an M.S. from Polytechnic University, and an M.B.A. from Dowling College. Cavanagh resides in Hazlet, N.J., where he recently served as chairman of the Open Space Advisory Council and planning board and as an environmental commissioner. In addition, he helped develop a STEM program for New York City middle school students considering Brooklyn Tech HS and is a regular judge at the NYC FIRST Robotics Competition.

Amanda Ludlow
Principal Scientist, Roux Associates, Inc.

Amanda Ludlow has more than 20 years of experience in design and implementation of sustainable approaches to remediation, from lifecycle assessment of remedial actions to the development of sustainable treatment alternatives including constructed treatment wetlands, phytotechnologies, and natural media filtration. Ludlow also specialized in the assessment and restoration of sensitive habitats from freshwater wetlands and tidal wetlands to riparian ecosystems (including sustainable shoreline stabilization design) to grassland and woodland habitats. Ludlow holds a B.S. in Bio Engineering, M.A. in Marine Biology, and a M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Peter J. Marcotullio, Ph.D.
Director, CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities (CISC)

Peter J. Marcotullio is professor of geography at Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY), director of the CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities (CISC), associate of the CUNY Advanced Science Research Center, and a faculty member in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Program at the CUNY Graduate Center. He is also adjunct professor of Urban Planning at Columbia University, Graduate School of Architecture Planning and Preservation.

Marcotullio’s research interests focus on the intersection of urbanization, energy, and the environment. Selected synthesis activities include: lead author for the “Energy Systems” chapter and contributing author for the “Urban” chapter in the Second North American State of the Carbon Cycle Report (SOCCR2) (due out December 2017), and coordinating lead author for the “Urban Energy Transformations” chapter of the Global Assessment Report of the Urban Climate Change Research Network (ARC3-2) (also 2017).

Marcotullio holds an M.A. in Biology from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.A. in Geography and a Ph.D. in Urban Planning from Columbia University. He has published five co-edited volumes and more than 35 book chapters and 40 peer-reviewed journal articles. He is an editor of the journal, Sustainability Science.

Sarah Meyland, J.D.
Associate Professor, Environmental Technology, NYIT School of Engineering and Computing Sciences

Sarah J. Meyland, J.D., is a water specialist with a background in groundwater protection, water resources management, and environmental law. Meyland has worked in New York government as the co-executive director of the NYS Legislative Commission on Water Resource Needs of Long Island. She was the watershed director for the Suffolk County Water Authority and the program coordinator for the Nassau County Planning Federation. Meyland also served as executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, a not-for-profit organization.

She sits on a variety of advisory committees and is the author of numerous publications and articles on water-related topics. She has developed a number of environmental laws in New York and at the federal level. Meyland has a law degree from St. John’s University School of Law, Master of Science in Water Resources Management from Texas A&M University, Bachelor of Science in Geological Oceanography, Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology from Humboldt State University, California, and Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of North Carolina, Greensboro.

Edward Romaine
Brookhaven Town Supervisor

Ed Romaine is Brookhaven Town’s 70th Supervisor. In his role, Romaine has championed environmental and quality of life issues in Brookhaven Town, while strengthening the town’s finances. During his first year in office, he spearheaded legislation that will protect the Carmans River, and he continues to champion environmental issues. Under his leadership, Brookhaven Town was named a Tree City USA in 2016 and 2017. Additionally, Brookhaven received nearly a million dollars in state grants in 2016 to work on major environmental projects that directly impact Long Island. Romaine brought single-stream recycling to Brookhaven in 2014 and continues to pioneer environmental programs that serve to better Brookhaven Town.

Romaine began his career in public service as a history teacher in the Hauppauge School District. In 1980, he entered public service as the Town of Brookhaven’s first Commissioner of Housing and Community Development and was later appointed Director of Economic Development. Romaine has served as a member of the Suffolk County Legislature and as Suffolk County Clerk. He earned a B.A. in History from Adelphi University and a master’s degree in history from Long Island University. He resides in Center Moriches with his wife, Diane.

Regiane Relva Romano, Ph.D.
Coordenadora Geral, Faculdade de Engenharia de Sorocaba (FACENS), Brazil

Regiane Relva Romano, Ph.D., is General Coordinator of the Smart Campus at FACENS (Faculdade de Engenharia de Sorocaba), a major technology university in Brazil. She is also CEO/CIO of VIP-Systems & Informática & Consultoria Ltd. As a researcher in the business of emerging technologies, she has lectured extensively in China, Germany, Colombia, Poland, the Netherlands, Uruguay, Canada, Spain, and the United States.

Romano is a member of the European RFID/Internet of Things Committee and is vice president of the ISCBA-Smart City Business America Institute. She developed the first smart store in Latin America and is widely recognized as an expert in topics related to smart, sustainable cities.

She earned a Ph.D. in Business Administration, with a concentration in Information Technology Management, at FGV (Fundação Getulio Vargas), and a master’s degree in Informatics-Management of Information Systems from PUC-CAMPINAS. She completed post-doctoral studies in the improvement of international retailing at the University of Ohio, in RFID at the University of Arkansas, and in business at Columbia University.