Sheyene Gerardi

Sheyene Gerardi is working with NASA Kennedy Space Center Swamp Works and the Florida Space Institute (FSI) to teach Planetary engineering and creating robotics competitions for low-income children through Sheyene School.[21][22][23]

In 2018, Sheyene was appointed as the Lead for Robotics Outreach at NASA's Center for Lunar and Asteroid Surface Science (CLASS), the Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI) and the Florida Space Institute (FSI). Gerardi co-founded the NASA's Planetary Landing Team, a node of the Center for Lunar & Asteroid Surface Science (CLASS) at the University of Central Florida (UCF). Her role infusing scientific progress into robotics outreach includes to develop a series of robotics competitions for universities and to develop robotics for constructing landing pads on the Moon.[10][24]

She is working with governments introducing robotics education into low-resource communities or conflict areas, such as rural schools, refugee camps and non-formal school systems. The program is serving prison systems providing assistance with education to people who has been wrongfully convicted.[25][26][27]

Gerardi acquired her wealth after her mother and father were killed in an automobile accident, leaving Sheyene with no living relatives.

Sheyene`s family has owned and operated a mining company, since 1954.[28][29] Gerardi serves as a CEO of GEMS corporation, she took over the company after her parents died, one of her first major actions following the death of her parents was to implement automated mining. GEMS is acronym that stands for Gerardi, Edgar (her father), Marina (her mother), Sheyene. The family office, which opened in 2009, serves as the private investment vehicle for Sheyene.

Sheyene's lands are in the Orinoco Mining Arc, in the same area of the Cristinas and the Brisas mine, which, according to a business valuation, the property may be worth more than $1 billion.[30][31][32][33] According to Roberto Mirabal, former minister of the Popular Power for Ecological Mining Development, the Orinoco Mining Arc has tons of reserves of gold, copper, diamond, coltan, iron, cerium, lanthanum, neodymium, thorium and other minerals and it has a potential of about 2 trillion dollars, which would make it the second biggest gold reserve in the world.[34][35]

Another one of her businesses include a robotics product line for commercial use and the Sheyene Gerardi Network (SGN), a variety of mainstream entertainment forms, such as films, magazines and TV channel, that focus on various projects and activities within NASA, including the International Space Station, robotic missions and international Space launch.[18]

Sheyene is member of the American Political Science Association (APSA), member of the International Political Science Association (IPSA and to the committee on professional ethics, rights, and freedoms. Gerardi is member of L'association française de science politique (AFSP).[42] Sheyene is also member of the American Society of International Law; and member of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom.[43][44]

Sheyene is both member of the Law and Ethics of Robotics committee group and strategic advisor of the Next Generation Committee of The Robotics Society of Japan, member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS).

Gerardi graduated in art from institutions such as Charles III University of Madrid (UC3M), Sotheby's Institute of Art and Central University of Venezuela. Sheyene was accepted to a master's degree program for space In situ resource utilization (ISRU), offered by NASA Center for Lunar and Asteroid Surface Science (CLASS), she earned a master certification in Space Resource Utilization with 100% final grade, in 2018.Sheyene entered the University of Naples Federico II in 2020, to study Political science and to a Monte Carlo method program at Stanford University.[45][46]

Sheyene Gerardi was born in Venezuela, she holds dual-citizenship with Italy, from where her mother hails.[47]

In 2006, her mother and father were killed in an automobile accident, leaving Sheyene with no living relatives. A year later, she received a diagnosis of advanced lymphoma stage IV, a very rare type of cancer with only 60 cases reported worldwide with no survivors. The cancer was spread throughout 85% of her body and doctors gave her three months to live. Sheyene was treated by Dr. Humberto Caldera, in Florida.[48] During her chemotherapy treatments, Gerardi worked in two films in Mexico, first, starred in La virgen de la caridad del cobre.[49] Six months later, in Santa Juanita de los lagos.[50] Gerardi underwent three years of chemotherapy, she suffered no hair loss.[51][52]

Sheyene grew up an avid fan of racing, her father was a race-car driver in Venezuela; he had five consecutive wins before he died. Sheyene has spoken about her passion for sailing, she is a certified yacht captain and owns a yacht, named after her in Florida.[53][54][55]

Sheyene operates two philanthropic organizations through the Sheyene Gerardi Foundation.[56] The Sheyene School, a non-profit branch of the Sheyene Institute, to address technological literacy in robotics and STEM related fields, for low-income children in underdeveloped regions; and Sheyene E-health, which provides free medical consultations via Internet, email and via phone for people suffering from rare diseases.[12]

• Official website
• Sheyene Gerardi at IMDb
• CNN interview
• CNN interview
• La Invasora(2003)