Dr Reevana Balmahoon, research group leader for Artificial Intelligence and Extended Reality (AI and XR) at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), will be participating in the TechWomen Leadership Exchange Programme, which will be held in the United States of America (USA) in October 2022.
TechWomen brings emerging women leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) from Africa, Central and South Asia and the Middle East, together with their professional counterparts in the USA, for a mentorship and leadership exchange programme. TechWomen provides participants access to networks, resources and knowledge to empower them to reach their full potential.
Integrating industry information into multifaceted research and development projects is the main emphasis of Reevana's work to provide innovation that is matched with industry needs. She is an engineering leader dedicated to advancing inclusivity and diversity in technology to guarantee a more equitable future.
Reevana has a passion for all things technology, fostering growth and prosperity in developing nations, and engineering sustainable societies for the future. She said that this programme is aligned to her goals as it will sharpen her skills in mentorship and knowledge sharing.
“The TechWomen programme will provide an opportunity to position technology leadership, gender parity and engineering capacity building at the centre of conversations around building a sustainable future,” says Reevana.
Reevana holds a PhD in Engineering from the University of the Witwatersrand, a Master of Business Administration from the Gordon Institute of Business Science and a professional Artificial Intelligence certificate from Stanford University. She is a technology specialist at WomHub, which is a boutique pan-African incubator for female founders in STEM. Reevana serves on the boards of various startups and is a member of the Institute of Directors in South Africa. She is also an Atlantic Council Millennium Leadership fellow for 2022.
