A big welcome to our new Member, Dragos Bratasanu, introduced by President-Elect Pat Heffernan.
Originally from Romania, Dragos Bratasanu, arrived in New Zealand about one year ago with his partner Anca. Three years ago they went to a church in Romania and gave everything away to the poor, and then left on a journey around the world. He's an award-winning writer, scientist, and speaker who presented on 5 continents. With a Ph.D. in satellite-based intelligence, he's received several international awards for his scientific research and innovation.
He's an adventurer having traveled alone on two expeditions to the North and the South Pole and he became the engineer of the first Romanian Simulation Mission to Mars, paving the way for future manned missions to the Red Planet. In 2015, Google and Singularity University selected Dragos to be part of a major entrepreneurial venture at NASA in Silicon Valley. The program brought together future leaders and entrepreneurs to create solutions for humanity's grand challenges. Forbes Magazine named their team “among the smartest people in the world.”
In 2017, Dragos was nominated for the Innovators Under 35 Award, the most prestigious recognition granted on behalf of MIT Technology Review for “the brightest minds in Europe that are changing society” with projects that can impact the world. He now works to solve depression and poverty in the modern world.