[🇧🇩] Bangladeshi Achievers

[Saif]

Team from Bangladesh wins Gold Medal at WSEEC 2025

A team from Bangladesh named ‘System Error’ has achieved a Gold Medal and a Special Award at the World Science, Environment, and Engineering Competition (WSEEC) 2025. The competition was held at Universitas Pancasila, Jakarta, Indonesia, from May 19-22, 2025.

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Team from Bangladesh wins Gold Medal at WSEEC 2025

Team 'System Error' won the Gold Medal in the 'Environment' category and received a Special Award for 'Innovation in Sustainable Environmental Impact'. Photos: Courtesy

A team from Bangladesh named 'System Error' has achieved a Gold Medal and a Special Award at the World Science, Environment, and Engineering Competition (WSEEC) 2025. The competition was held at Universitas Pancasila, Jakarta, Indonesia, from May 19-22, 2025.

This year, 293 teams competed at the WSEEC from 14 countries, including Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. WSEEC 2025 was organised by the Indonesian Young Scientist Association (IYSA) in collaboration with Universitas Pancasila. At the event, 234 teams competed online and 59 teams competed onsite in Indonesia.

Team 'System Error' won the Gold Medal in the 'Environment' category and received a Special Award for 'Innovation in Sustainable Environmental Impact'. The team consisted of Md Tanjir Arafat (American International University Bangladesh), Mohammad Mehran Islam Mahim (BAF Shaheen College, Dhaka), Md Reain Shahrior Prottoy (South Point School and College), and Nur Hossen Asif (American International University Bangladesh).

The competition was judged on criteria of innovation and originality of the idea, technical execution (hardware and software implementation), functionality and real-world impact, presentation and communication skills, documentation and research support, and poster content and design.

The team received the awards for 'Green Rover', an AI-powered autonomous waste management bot created by them, with capabilities including detecting smart bins using IR and ultrasonic sensors, collecting waste automatically using servo-controlled mechanisms, sorting waste into recyclable and non-recyclable categories with internal logic, spraying water when it detects dusty environments using air quality sensors, sending live sensor data such as temperature, humidity, gas levels to cloud, and displaying live readings on an LCD screen during operations.

This was team System Error's first international competition. Regarding the achievement, team leader Tanjir said, "Such an achievement in our debut will remain a source of great inspiration for us." In explaining their approach, team member Mahim shared, "Making the robot was not just about circuits and code, but it was about hope and innovation that would have a real-world impact." Asif and Prottoy echoed the same sentiment and shared that the team wants to continue their work beyond borders.​

 

[Saif]

From Sea to Summit: Shakil walks from Cox’s Bazar to Everest

Ikramul Hasan Shakil hoisted the Bangladesh flag on the Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world, after walking all the way from Cox’s Bazar.

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From Sea to Summit: Shakil walks from Cox’s Bazar to Everest
Sozib Mia
Published: 20 May 2025, 09: 35

Ikramul Hasan Shakil is at base camp.Facebook/Ikramul Hasan Shakil

Ikramul Hasan Shakil hoisted the flag of Bangladesh on the Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world, after walking all the way from Cox’s Bazar. He reached the summit at 6:30 am Nepal time on Monday, 19 May.

Shakil’s Nepali travel agency 8K Expeditions confirmed the news to Prothom Alo.

In the meantime, expedition coordinators said in a post on Ikramul Hasan’s Facebook page at 2:10 pm today, “We just received news that Shakil has summited and is in good health. He has descended to Camp 4. Details is unavailable at the moment due to network issues.”

Ikramul Hasan named his journey “Sea to Summit.” He began his trek toward Everest on 25 February at noon from Inani Beach in Cox’s Bazar. He walked through Chattogram, Feni, Cumilla, and Munshiganj, reaching Dhaka after 12 days.

After a short break, he resumed his walk through Gazipur, Tangail, Sirajganj, and arrived in Panchagarh on 28 March. The next day, he crossed into India, passing through Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling, and entered Nepal on 31 March. After walking nearly 1,400 kilometres, he reached the Everest Base Camp on 29 April.

Since then, Ikramul stayed at the base camp. On 6 May, he began a rotation climb, reaching up to Camp 3 before returning to base camp on 10 May.

This rotation was a vital part of acclimatisation before the final summit attempt. For the main expedition, he left base camp and reached Camp 2 on 16 May, arrived at Camp 3 on 17 May, and Camp 4 on 18 May. From Camp 4, he made his final summit push today, Monday.

In 1990, Australian mountaineer Tim Macartney-Snape planned his second ascent of Everest and called the sole expedition “Sea to Summit,” intending to walk from sea level to the top of the world.

He started from Ganga Sagar in India and walked 1,200 kilometres in 96 days to reach the summit.

Inspired by Macartney-Snape, Ikramul Hasan named his own journey “Sea to Summit,” and began the expedition from Cox’s Bazar, the most popular tourist destination in Bangladesh, and walked all the way to conquer Everest.

Ikramul Hasan Shakil.Facebook/Ikramul Hasan Shakil

PRAN sponsored the “Sea to Summit” expedition in association with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Mr. Noodles, Makalu E-Traders in Nepal, and Systema Toothbrush.

Mount Everest saw its first successful summit over a hundred years after the first expedition attempts. New Zealander Edmund Hillary, along with Nepali Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, became the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest on 29 May 1953.

Musa Ibrahim became the first Bangladeshi to conquer the Everest peak on 23 May 2010. MA Muhit summited the peak in 2011 and again in 2012. On 19 May 2012, Nishat Majumder became the first Bangladeshi woman to summit Everest. On May 26 of the same year, Wasfia Nazreen also summited Everest. On 20 May 2013, Sajal Khaled became the fifth Bangladeshi to summit Everest, but he died on the descent.

After that, there was a long gap in Everest expeditions by Bangladeshis. After 11 years, on 19 May last year, Babar Ali raised the red and green flag atop Everest. This year, Ikramul Hasan continued that legacy.

Ikramul Hasan Shakil.Facebook/Ikramul Hasan Shakil

Ikramul Hasan received his basic and advanced mountaineering training from the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering in India.

He has successfully summited Himalayan peaks such as Kyajo Ri, Draupadi Ka Danda II, Himlung, and Dolma Khang. He gained fame when he trekked the 1,700-kilometer-long Great Himalaya Trail, which spans east to west across Nepal through the Himalayan range, in 2023.​

 

[Saif]

Another Bangladeshi makes it to 2025 Forbes list

Sayed Zubaer Hasan, founder of Krishi Shwapno, transforms Bangladesh’s farming through tech-driven, climate-resilient solutions. Recognised by Forbes, his agritech startup empowers 27,000+ smallholders with data, training, and direct market access for lasting social impact.

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Another Bangladeshi makes it to 2025 Forbes list

In the early hours of a stormy day, while returning from a flood-affected farming community, Sayed Zubaer Hasan received an unexpected nudge from a teammate: "Check Google. Forbes just released the list." Moments later, his name appeared on Forbes' 2025 '30 Under 30 Asia' under the Social Impact category. But instead of basking in the glow, he thought about the farmers they had just visited — struggling under rising waters, uncertain yields, and collapsing markets.

For Hasan, this wasn't a personal victory. "This is not just a company for us," he explained. "Krishi Shwapno was always a movement — essentially meant to accelerate the dreams of farmers, not mine."

From farmer's son to agritech changemaker

Born into a farmer's family, Hasan's earliest memories aren't of computers or classrooms — they're of soil, sweat, and unspoken frustration. "My father didn't know how much fertiliser to use, how to test the soil, or when to sell," he recalled. "He would work four to six months, then sell his crops at whatever price the middleman offered. There was no negotiation — just survival."

That helplessness shaped Krishi Shwapno. Founded in 2019, the startup offers a 360-degree solution for smallholder farmers, from pre-harvest planning to post-harvest market linkage.

Tech in the trenches

In a country where over 80 per cent of farmers are smallholders, flashy technology means little without contextual grounding. Hasan knew this from the start. "We didn't throw apps at farmers and walk away," he explained. "We started with soil-testing kits, because even that basic data was missing."

Krishi Shwapno's model is hyper-local. Through regional agents and field incubation, farmers receive training in financial literacy, sustainable practices, and climate-resilient methods. "We give them digital learning content, hands-on sessions, and help them turn farming from mere survival to a form of enterprise."

But the real test was market access. "Even after improving their methods, farmers were stuck," said Hasan. "Without data-driven market forecasting or logistics support, they had no choice but to sell to local middlemen — often at a loss." Krishi Shwapno's platform closes that loop, connecting farmers directly with buyers, processors, and urban retailers.

Clean agriculture, not just buzzwords

As global eyes turn to food safety and climate-smart agriculture, Krishi Shwapno is quietly pushing Bangladesh in that direction. "Clean agriculture isn't just about reducing pesticide use. It's about traceability, climate resilience, and dignity in production," said Hasan.

Their training modules emphasise safe pesticide use, packaging hygiene, and crop selection tailored to climate-vulnerable regions. In char and coastal areas, where flash floods and soil salinity wreak havoc, Krishi Shwapno equips farmers with the tools and knowledge to adapt and survive.

"Farming in these areas shouldn't be a death sentence," he remarked. "It should be a badge of resilience."

A different kind of entrepreneurship

Hasan doesn't talk like your typical CEO. There are no growth charts or jargon-loaded pitches. Instead, he speaks in the language of empathy, responsibility, and pivoting. "Social entrepreneurship only works if it comes from a place of pain," he explained. "Ours did. That's why it works."

But he doesn't romanticise it either. "This is not a glory trip. You need a problem-solving mindset, yes — but more than that, you need to execute. And when your first idea doesn't work, you pivot." Krishi Shwapno started as a tech tool. Today, it's a service ecosystem. That transformation, he insists, is not a side note — it's the story.

The road ahead

With 27,000 active smallholder farmers in their network and operations in 15 regions, Krishi Shwapno is expanding, but not by chasing scale for scale's sake. "We want to build depth before we build width," he said. Their long-term vision? To ensure 50 per cent of Bangladesh's farmers adopt clean, climate-resilient practices within the next three years.

That's ambitious — but then again, so is turning generational pain into generational change.

A call, not a celebration

When asked what advice he'd give to other young entrepreneurs, Hasan paused. "Don't start a startup to escape a job. Start it because you see something broken and can't sleep until it's fixed."

He emphasised three traits every impact-driven entrepreneur must nurture: the ability to feel (empathy), the discipline to act (execution), and the courage to adapt (pivoting). "Vision without execution is just daydreaming," he said.

As we wrapped the interview, he remarked, "Recognition is nice, but the real work begins the next day."

And perhaps that's the real measure of impact — not who makes the list, but who keeps showing up when the monsoon hits.​

 

[Saif]

Bangladeshi youth Bahauddin on US National Academies committee

Bangladeshi youth, Syed Bahauddin Alam has been elected and appointed as a member on a committee under the prestigious United States institution, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM).

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Bangladeshi youth Bahauddin on US National Academies committee
Mansura Hossain Dhaka
Updated: 27 May 2025, 21: 29

Syed Bahauddin Alam Courtesy of Syed Bahauddin Alam

Bangladeshi youth, Syed Bahauddin Alam has been elected and appointed as a member on a committee under the prestigious United States institution, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM).

Bahauddin is an assistant professor in the an assistant professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma and Radiological Engineering at The Grainger College of Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). According to UIUC website, he is only the second faculty member from his department to have been elected to this committee in recent years.

In January, Bahauddin was selected as a member of NASEM’s 11-member expert committee on Artificial Intelligence (AI), titled ‘Foundation Models for Scientific Discovery and Innovation: Opportunities across the Department of Energy’.

Bahauddin shared the news of his election and appointment on 28 February via Facebook. The same day, the news was published on UIUC website as well. His name has already been listed on the committee’s page on the NASEM website.

According to NASEM website, the committee is tasked with exploring cutting-edge AI-based foundation models in energy research. It focuses particularly on developing and expanding such technologies for the United States Department of Energy. The committee serves as an advisory body to the energy department on these matters.

National Academies taken from Facebook

The committee includes experts and researchers from several top institutions, including the California Institute of Technology, Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Southern California.

This year, Bahauddin has also added another significant achievement to his portfolio. He has been awarded the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research for Assistant Professor 2025 by the Grainger College of Engineering at UIUC.

There are 12 engineering departments at the Grainger College of Engineering and every year, four to five assistant professors are recognised with this award for outstanding research. According to an announcement from the institution on 4 March, Bahauddin is among the recipients of the award this year.

Speaking to Prothom Alo via Facebook messenger, Syed Bahauddin Alam said he is now working on monitoring whether components such as pipes, cables and temperature levels are functioning properly in the nuclear energy systems using the advancement of AI.

Bahauddin noted that by combining AI with digital twin and real-time technologies, it is now possible to detect critical parameters in the nuclear systems that are typically hard to detect or not directly measurable, within milliseconds.

Originally from Chattogram, Bahauddin completed his graduation in electrical and electronic engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), after completing his secondary and higher secondary education at Faujdarhat Cadet College.

Syed Bahauudin Alam's Facebook post about the news.Taken from Bahauddin's Facebook

His interest in energy solutions was sparked in childhood, driven by frequent load shedding. This early experience inspired him to pursue a career dedicated to solving energy challenges.

Later, he earned his Master’s and PhD degrees in nuclear engineering from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. Over the years, he has carried out research in the United States, France, and in South Korea.

Bahauddin began his academic career at the Missouri University of Science and Technology in the US, where he founded a research lab titled ‘Machine Learning and ARTIficial Intelligence for Advancing Nuclear Systems (MARTIANS).

The lab has since moved to the University of Illinois and is dedicated to research on digital twin technologies and real-time prediction algorithms. The main goal of the research is to develop explainable artificial intelligence, predictive maintenance systems, and online monitoring system for nuclear energy applications.

Bahauddin settled in the United States towards the end of 2019. He lives there with his wife, Tohfatur Ridwan, and their two children: a six-year-old daughter named Ikra Syeda and a one-year-old son named Ibad Syed. His parents and younger sister are in Bangladesh.

While speaking to Prothom Alo, Syed Bahauddin Alam said that his family, particularly his wife, helped him immensely to reach this stage in his career. He also acknowledged that the contributions of his parents, sister, in-laws, and extended family were undeniable as well.

Securing a position at a prestigious university in the United States after completing a PhD in the UK was really challenging. Plus, relocating to the US during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic added to the challenge, Bahauddin noted.

Bahauddin dreams of helping build a world powered by safe nuclear energy. He believes his appointment to the NASEM committee offers a rare opportunity to influence national policy and research where artificial intelligence meets energy.

While speaking about AI, Bahauddin told Prothom Alo, “A child learns whatever it is taught. To put it simply, AI is also a lot like a child. It will function just the way it’s put to use. A sort of fear has built up in many people regarding the AI technology. However, it’s safe to say that the power to make critical decisions remains, and will continue to remain, in human hands.”

Talking about his current research, Bahauddin said, “Our research group has proposed a new method that is able to monitor vital nuclear system conditions in real time to keep the nuclear energy systems safe using cutting-edge machine learning technology. Many of the critical parameters inside a nuclear reactor are extremely difficult to measure because they often exist in highly hostile environments.”

“With our digital twin approach, we can use virtual sensors to predict temperature and heat flow conditions. This method can deliver results up to a thousand times faster than conventional computational fluid dynamics simulations, significantly reducing the need for installing physical sensors at every point in the system,” he continued.

Bahauddin shared that several PhD researchers in his group, Kazuma Kobayashi, Farid Ahmed, Samarendra Roy, and Trevor Talbot are currently engaged in this research actively.

Explaining the concept, he said, “Imagine we have a virtual map of the reactor in our hands—one that provides real-time feedback. This system eliminates the need to place sensors in hazardous areas. Not only does it significantly improve the speed of monitoring, but it also enhances accuracy and reliability. As a result, potential issues can be detected early, which marks a major step forward in both aspects of safety and efficiency. And this is exactly what we’re working on.”

He added that, “AI is not replacing human oversight. Instead, it’s opening up new possibilities for detecting and observing potential faults or failures within various components of complex systems, well before they become critical.”

Bahauddin also mentioned that there are vast opportunities for AI research in Bangladesh. In fact various such projects are already being carried out here, he added. Bahauddin also expressed his ambition to collaborate with universities to offer specialised AI training to Bangladeshi students in the energy sector.​