Dr. Patrick Meier is a social impact founder and translational leader with 15+ years of leadership experience at the intersection of emerging tech and social innovation. He is deeply committed to climate action, social justice, and systems change. In 2010, President Clinton recognized him for his pioneering work in Humanitarian Technology, which led him to Climate Tech.
Patrick co-leads the Climate Robotics Network and serves as Entrepreneur in Residence at the Center for EssentialTech at the Swiss Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL). He also advises startups, companies, investors, and international organizations.
Previously, Patrick served as the Strategy Lead for Robotics at the Swiss Institute of Technology (EPFL Robotics) and at Innovation Booster Robotics, an accelerator funded by the Swiss Agency for Innovation. Before this, he served as Executive Director of WeRobotics, an international tech nonprofit he co-founded with labs in 40+ countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean and South Pacific. In this capacity, and as a certified drone pilot, he spearheaded the deployment of drones for disaster response, medical logistics, climate action, STEM and more.
Patrick also co-founded the award-winning Flying Labs Network, Digital Humanitarian Network, Humanitarian UAV Network, and CrisisMappers: The Humanitarian Technology Network. These networks were funded by the UN, World Bank, Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, Humanity United, Omidyar Network, Open Society Institute, Google, IBM, ESRI, DigitalGlobe, the European Commission, and USAID, among a dozen other donors.
In addition, Patrick has consulted for multiple UN agencies, including UNICEF, UNDP, OCHA, Global Pulse, and the UN Office of the Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide. He has also consulted for the World Bank, the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC), the European Commission, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the European Space Agency (ESA), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and international companies including Planet Labs and Meta (Disaster Maps).
Patrick is a National Geographic Emerging Explorer and UBS Global Visionary. He has also held multiple fellowships, e.g., from Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Climatebase, UNICEF Innovations, and the Rockefeller Foundation. He has given over 200 talks/keynotes, including 5 TEDx talks. His work has appeared across the media, including the New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, BBC, NBC, ABC, UK Guardian, Forbes, Times, The Economist, Wall Street Journal, NPR, Mashable, Wired, Slate, Nature, New Scientist, National Geographic and other outlets.
Patrick is the author of the book Digital Humanitarians and co/author of 80+ articles, reports, peer-reviewed papers, and book chapters. He holds a Ph.D. from The Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, a Pre-Doc from Stanford University, and an MA from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). He was also an exchange student at UC Berkeley.
More importantly, Patrick was born and raised in Africa.
Copyright © 2024 Climate Robotics Network - All Rights Reserved.