By Fred Schindler. IEEE Technical Activities Vice President, 2024

IEEE’s mission is succinctly stated in “Advancing Technology for the Benefit of Humanity.” This is more than a slogan; it is actually what IEEE is chartered to do. IEEE is not a membership organization; it is a public charity with this specific mission.

Technical Activities notably contributes to this mission. Even those activities that generate a surplus, such as publishing journals and sponsoring conferences, are in support of that mission. Those surpluses can be used to further the mission. There are well-established activities in our Societies and Councils, such as providing grants to students and offering presentations by our Distinguished Lecturers around the world. We have communities, initiatives, and programs to focus on emerging and cross-disciplinary areas. If there is a technical area that needs support, we do that with the knowledge that we will benefit society.

With this special issue of Tech Spotlight, we highlight even more of our Societies’ and Councils’ activities in support of the mission. Some of these activities are well-known, and others are not. I hope that by highlighting these activities, we inspire each other to do even more and to collaborate across Technical Activities and all of IEEE for an even greater impact.

Technical Activities collaborates with several other IEEE organizations to support this work. Examples include the Humanitarian Activities Board and Educational Activities Boards. We also work closely with the IEEE Foundation. They have provided some examples of the success our Societies and Councils have had working with them. The Societies and Councils also collaborate with the Standards Association, the Publications Services and Products Board, Member and Geographic Activities, and IEEE USA.

I’m inspired by the good works done in Technical Activities and across the IEEE and the lasting impact they can have. I also look forward to doing more and sharing more. I regret that we could only share some of those good works. If you would like us to highlight some of the great things your Society or Council is doing in a future issue of the Spotlight, send a note to .