M. Beatrice Dias (Bea) was born and raised in Sri Lanka and went on to earn her undergraduate degree from Hamilton College in Clinton New York. Following college, she worked in the private sector for two years before moving to Pittsburgh to complete her Ph.D. in Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU). Her postdoctoral field research focused on evaluating the impact of technology in underserved communities across the globe. Bea currently serves as a Project Director for the CREATE Lab at CMU. In this capacity she works with a variety of communities to explore how technology can serve as a tool for empowerment.