Applying Artificial Intelligence to Modernize our Recycling Infrastructure
MEETING FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 17, 2023
This Meeting at a Glance:
Program: Applying Artificial Intelligence to Modernize our Recycling Infrastructure
Speaker: Carling Spelhaug
Is this your first time to visit us? If so, welcome to our weekly online meeting! To complete our meeting, please continue reading from here to the bottom of this page. Each Monday our week’s meeting is posted early in the morning, U.S. Pacific Time. These meetings are designed so that you can read and watch what we post anytime during the week. The entire meeting takes about 60 minutes to complete, with the video conference recording of the program being the bulk of the time. Note that you can easily read this meeting with your favorite device, so feel free to take our meeting on the go with you. Please also make sure to complete the attendance form at the bottom and leave a comment. Enjoy!
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Read and watch the content below in its entirety.
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Message from our President
Dear Fellow Members,
I am excited to share some exciting news with you all. Back in 2019, a group of Rotary members from Spain, including José Bailén, conceived the idea of an international RYLA event. This innovative concept later evolved into an e-RYLA, with our very own member, Martina Spann, playing a key role as the co-founder.
This year, we are proud to celebrate the 4th edition of this event, which our club has had the pleasure of co-hosting since last year. In particular, we are thrilled to join forces with other clubs, including the E-club del Mediterráneo (Spain), the E-club of Cologne (Germany), and the RC International of Sofia (Bulgaria), in co-hosting this special occasion. Furthermore, the Rotaract Clubs of Cologne and Sofia International will lend their support to this event.
The e-RYLA will take place on April 21st and 22nd, focusing on the crucial theme of "Sustainability and the Environment." The event will be conducted in both English and Spanish, ensuring a diverse and inclusive experience for all attendees.
More information can be found from this link. I cordially invite all our members to attend the e-RYLA and encourage you to share this invitation with any young individuals who might be interested in participating. Let us come together to support and promote sustainability and environmental awareness in our communities and beyond.
Yours in Rotary,
Angelica Marotta, PhD
President 2022-2023 Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley
Rotary International District 5170
WEEKLY FUNNY WITH SHAGS
We believe laughter is an important part of life, and we should all make time to laugh a little. This segment of our meeting is meant to tickle you just enough. These funnies are curated by member Steven "Shags" Shagrin!
He's Never Lost!
A friend of mine always helps me with maps and diagrams, pointing out all the little symbols and what they mean...
The guy is a legend!
INSPIRATION
Every week we share a short video highlighting innovation, education, entrepreneurship, or whatever we think might inspire you to see the world in new ways.
Virginia Rose fell off a horse decades ago and became partially paralyzed. Since then, however, she has become an advocate and an inspiration. Enjoy this story from PBS' Brief But Spectacular series.
LEARN SOMETHING NEW
How is Milk Chocolate Made?
I've been to the Hershey's Chocolate factory for the tour a few times. As a child, it was more open to the facility, as when we took our kids, it was much more limited of a tour. Still fun to see!
Relay Time!
Hello All:
As you probably know, our club is working hard to support research to end cancer, bring hope to those fighting the disease, and remember those we've lost. One of the ways each member can take part is through messages about those we encourage and honor, and here are several messages we shared last year:
from Sarah: "In honor of Grandma Madeline Tuberty, we miss you and love you and I cannot wait to celebrate you and your life by getting married this fall and using your wedding rings! Thank you for passing these on to me, they fit perfectly!"
from Keith: "In memory of Nicole Nada"
from Shags: "In Memory of Sisters: Leah Yecies Hantman and Norma Yecies Shagrin"
from Olu: "You have been brave, never give up because you are closer to your total healing." (translated from Yoruba)
Do you have someone we can encourage or honor? If so, let me know in a reply!
Members and friends of the club have already raised over $1000 - woohoo! We are hoping to get to $1500, so please donate if you can; any amount is helpful!
There are more ways to get involved:
Like above, share a message with the name of someone you wish to honor or remember. Email that to me.
Join the The Wild Walkers team (click here to do so) and plan to join our group at the event at Townsend Field in Santa Clara the afternoon of Saturday, April 29th, from 4:00-8:00. Email me for details on that, too.
Donate as part of our effort. You can do so on this page (look for the green button on the right), and any amount is welcome. These funds go to support research against cancer, help survivors and caregivers, and provide educational materials. (It says that it's "Robert's" page, which is my first name, and what has stuck in the ACS system.)
Honor a friend or family member with a luminaria (each costs $10). If you want to honor someone but are tight on funds (it happens!), you can email me the name and a message, and I'll get it added to the group.
Here's our 2023 team (so far): Cal, Carey, Heather, Lisa, MikeK, Mitty, Nick, Rushton, SusanL, Tatiana, TerriS, Tzviatko, Yvonne; also guests Christine and Josephine
(If you've done something and your name isn't in this list - apologies! Just let Rushton know, and he'll get you added.)
In service,
Rushton
A big thank-you to the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley Relay for Life Team (as of lunchtime on April 6th): Cal, Rushton, and Terri!
We can use some more help! Will you donate or participate in another way today?
If you've taken part but don't see your name, let Rushton know and he'll get you added.
SERVICE REPORT
Tell us about service you’ve done recently in your community.
Click here to fill out The Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley Service Survey
ROTARY SERVICE PROJECT OPPORTUNITY IN MEXICO
Charter member Keith Marsh is organizing a Rotary project to Project Amigo in October for the “Day of the Dead” (Dia de los Muertos). The week-long trip to Cofradia, Mexico will include Rotary Service in the areas of International Service, Youth Service and Fellowship. It will also include cultural and travel photography of the festivities surrounding Day of the Dead. Space is limited. Click below to download the .pdf for more details and visit the Project Amigo website at: https://www.projectamigo.org/ Contact Keith or leave a comment below if you are interested in attending.
HAPPY DOLLARS: Do Good by Sharing Something Good
Each week we ask our members to share stories with the club and toss in a few dollars to support our efforts. The primary goal of this section is to provide a fun way of getting to know each fellow members and guests, while giving back to a good cause.
Happy dollars is an opportunity to share something positive that has happened in your life whether it is personal or business. Think of it as your opportunity to brag a little, but also put a little bit into a karma jar. The money donated through happy dollars is put to charitable use, and the message that you leave for happy dollars will be posted in our online meeting the following week for the entire week for folks to see! (Pending that it’s appropriate!)
Here are the happy dollars contributions from last week!
This section is usually updated in the early hours of Saturday, so contributions made over the weekend may not be listed here.
Lisa Akselrad made a $20 donation.
My brother and I went on a cruise together (his first) and had a great time in the Southern Caribbean.
PROGRAM: Applying Artificial Intelligence to Modernize our Recycling Infrastructure
SPEAKER: Carling Spelhaug
Every week we bring to you a new program on innovation, entrepreneurship, and education, and how those contribute to service to others.
The Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley seeks to explore perspectives on service from across the world. The views of the speakers in our programs are their own, and unless stated otherwise, are not necessarily reflective of the views of our eClub nor Rotary International.
If you have an idea for a cool speaker, please feel free to reach out to them directly or submit THIS FORM so our Program Committee can contact them!
The waste and recycling industry is quickly adopting advanced technologies, including robotics systems guided by artificial intelligence, to automate the identification and sorting of recyclables from mixed material streams. With materials recovery facilities and municipalities facing labor shortages, contamination, and the need to increase productivity and diversion, robots serve as a tool to overcome these challenges and more.
AI-driven solutions are enabling economic improvements via retrofits within today's waste management infrastructure. Learn more about these solutions, as well as how ongoing advancements in AI are facilitating the expansion of new infrastructure, helping to maximize the volume and quality of recycled feedstock by turning what was previously considered contamination into new material markets.
Our speaker, Carling Spelhaug, leads public relations and communications for AMP Robotics, a pioneer in AI, robotics, and infrastructure for the waste and recycling industry. She has nearly 15 years of public, private, and growth-stage company experience. Before joining AMP in early 2020, she led external communications for several areas of audit, tax, and advisory firm Grant Thornton LLP's business. She spent the first eight years of her career at investment research firm Morningstar. Spelhaug holds a bachelor's degree in history and a master's degree in communications from Northwestern University.
Members and guests, please welcome Carling Spelhaug!
To learn more, go to:
AMP Robotics website: https://www.amprobotics.com/
AMP Robotics YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@AMPRobotics
UPCOMING PROGRAM RECORDING SCHEDULE
All of our guest speakers and programs are recorded live online over Zoom video conference. We welcome members and guests to join us in one of these upcoming recordings. Recordings are approximately 30 minutes long and are subject to change without notice.
Our online video conference room link for these recordings is always http://zoom.siliconvalleyrotary.com/. You are welcome to join us! Please note the timezone listed for all recordings is US Pacific Time (San Francisco, California, USA).
If you can’t join the live recording, please send your questions for an upcoming speaker to programs@siliconvalleyrotary.com.
THE ATTENDANCE SURVEY
Thanks for reading and watching this week’s meeting. You have two last things to do before you’re done.
We have a very short attendance survey below for you to fill out to record your attendance.
Visiting Rotarians, this is how you can get an email receipt to pass along to your club’s secretary as proof that you’ve attended our meeting if you need it for makeups.
Non-Rotarian Guests, we would love to see who is dropping by our meetings! This part is optional for you. If you think you may want to join our eClub at some point in the future, we would strongly recommend you fill out the attendance form as it will improve your chances of success for your membership application.
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