InterDrone: Women to Watch in UAS Named by Women and Drones

The women in drones event at InterDrone has grown dramatically every year, and Women And Drones, an advocacy and educational resource for women and girls interested in drones, has grown too.  At this year’s event, Women And Drones named a new list of “Women to Watch” to celebrate the achievements and honor the efforts of women across industry sectors.

By the way – if you have a daughter, granddaughter or young friend who might be interested in drones, check out Women And Drones children’s books to share your passion!

“Women to Watch in UAS List” Named by Women And Drones

Glenview, IL – (September 5, 2019) – Women And Drones is pleased to announce the 2019Women to Watch in UAS List.  The award is designed to acknowledge and motivate women who are driving change and leading the drone industry closer to gender parity.The five exceptional female honorees selected are helping shape the UAS (unmanned aerial systems) future through achievements in a variety of categories. The nomination process resulted in 471 entries from 8 countries.  The judging panel included Chris Korody of DroneBusiness.center, Helena Samsioe of GLOBHE, Jennifer Pidgen of Sundance Media Group, Cynthia Huang of DJI, Brooke Tapsall, Drone-Alert and Wendy Erikson of Women And Drones.

Humanitarian Honoree – Amrita Lal of Fiji

Lal serves as the Regional Coordinator at South Pacific Fly Labs. She uses drones to prepare quick and effective reporting methods for remote communities, in coordination with the ministry of Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation.   Lal also worked with the Fiji Red Cross last year in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Keni, using drones for disaster risk assessment and response operation.

Innovation Honoree – Evangeline Corcoran of Australia

As a Quantitative Ecologist, Corcoran’s research revolves around the development of new detection and population modeling techniques for wildlife using drones, thermal imaging and machine learning.  She is a PhD candidate as well as Head Tutor at Queensland University of Technology.

Education Honoree – Meghan Salter of the U.S.A.

This West Virginia public school teacher and FAA Certified Remote Pilot has been incorporating drone technology into her curriculum for the past four years. Salter describes teaching in one of the country’s most underrepresented cultural regions while hoping to inspire the next generation of innovators and leaders.  She says, “I want to show my students that they can break the cycle of poverty through education.”

Entrepreneurial Honoree – Hitomi Uematsu of Singapore

Uematsu had a vision of making the sky a new communication platform, which led to her co-founding SKYMAGIC drone swarming technology company in 2017. SKYMAGIC has become one of the world’s leading performance drone companies, most recently entertaining more than a million spectators at the Zurich Festival in Switzerland.

Leadership Honoree – Dawn Zoldi of the U.S.A.

Dawn Zoldi is Associate General Counsel, Business Matters Attorney for the United States Air Force Academy, Secretary of the Air Force General Counsel. She is an internationally recognized expert who regularly speaks and is widely published on the topic of UAS law, regulation and policy.  “I’ve successfully advocated for and have greatly enhanced understanding of the key role that law, policy and regulation play in fully operationalizing UAS technologies.”