Celebrating National Volunteer Month 2026

Each April, SIAM recognizes National Volunteer Month by highlighting the individuals who generously contribute their time and energy to strengthen both SIAM and the broader mathematical sciences community. From SIAM journal editors, conference organizers, and student chapter advisors to SIAM committee members, SIAM News authors, and volunteer leaders serving on the SIAM Board of Trustees or Council, our volunteers play a pivotal role in everything we do. We extend our sincere thanks to all of our volunteers for their continued service and dedication!

As part of this recognition, SIAM is pleased to spotlight Dr. Panos Tsilifis. Learn more about his profession and volunteer work with SIAM below.

Panos Tsilifis, Lead Engineer, GE Vernova Research Center

Dr. Panos Tsilifis is a lead engineer at GE Vernova Research Center, the energy portfolio business of the former General Electric Company, located in the Albany area of New York. He joined General Electric Research in 2020 and was part of the Probabilistic Design Group until 2023, before transitioning to the Artificial Intelligence Group at GE Vernova. During this time, he conducted research that enabled the application of computational statistics, machine learning, and uncertainty quantification (UQ) principles across numerous engineering domains including thermo- and aerodynamics, combustion mechanics, electrical systems, nuclear energy-powered reactors, steam and gas turbines, materials science, and additive manufacturing. In parallel with his research career, Dr. Tsilifis also held consulting roles with organizations including the World Bank and Advanced Blockchain AG.

Most of Dr. Tsilifis’ academic background and education focused on applied mathematics, with an emphasis on computational statistics and UQ. During his Ph.D. at the University of Southern California (USC), he conducted research on surrogate modeling techniques such as polynomial chaos and Gaussian processes, as well as Monte Carlo and Bayesian statistics, with applications mainly in geosciences and other areas of civil engineering. He later served as a postdoctoral researcher and research scientist at USC (2016-18) and École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland (2018-20). He has published extensively in academic journals and conference proceedings in UQ, computational science and engineering, machine learning, and reliability engineering.

Dr. Tsilifis’ involvement with SIAM began in 2014 through a student membership, which he pursued to explore the academic mathematical sciences community, build connections, and identify growth and career opportunities. At the time, he had recently moved to the United States for his Ph.D. and was navigating both an unfamiliar academic landscape and uncertainty about what a future career in mathematics might look like. Receiving a SIAM Student Travel Award enabled him to attend his first SIAM conference—the 2015 SIAM Conference on Computational Science and Engineering (CSE15). He later attended the 2015 SIAM Conference on Mathematical & Computational Issues in the Geosciences (GS15) and submitted two abstracts to the 2016 SIAM Conference on Uncertainty Quantification (UQ16) in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Attending SIAM conferences was pivotal to Dr. Tsilifis’ professional growth and career development, opening doors to new opportunities and fruitful collaborations. One year after attending SIAM UQ16, he accepted a postdoctoral position at EPFL, citing the SIAM community’s role in increasing the visibility of his work and supporting professional networking. Reflecting on these experiences, he shared, “You learn that  scientific research is not merely a job you do in a cold academic or corporate office, but it can be a whole living experience shared with people who have the same values and goals as you.”

Building on this sense of community, Dr. Tsilifis emphasized the importance of personal connection: “It’s mainly the people you meet along the way that keep motivating you and pushing you further.” Over time, he became increasingly involved within the community, organizing minisymposia at several conferences—including the 2019 SIAM Conference on Computational Science and Engineering (CSE19), the 2021 SIAM Conference on Computational Science and Engineering (CSE21), and the 2024 SIAM Conference on Uncertainty Quantification (UQ24)—as well as publishing and reviewing research for SIAM journals.

This year, he served as a member of the 2026 SIAM Conference on Uncertainty Quantification (UQ26) organizing committee. The experience provided hands‑on involvement in planning a major international conference, including contributing to plenary speaker invitations and the selection of minitutorial topics highlighting emerging research areas. Serving as an organizer positively impacted both his professional visibility and his company’s. Additionally, Dr. Tsilifis served on the SIAM Activity Group on Uncertainty Quantification Early Career Prize committee (2025-26), with the award presented during SIAM UQ26.

Dr. Tsilifis attests that volunteering with SIAM allows individuals to meaningfully contribute to and engage with a scientific community, while building a strong professional network rooted in shared values around research and collaboration. He also notes that SIAM helped him stay motivated during challenging points in his career, offering a supportive environment where interactions with peers and guidance from senior researchers provided clarity and direction. He credits SIAM with fostering a sense of community that helped him better understand how research and scientific knowledge can be advanced across both academic and industrial settings. “That is a priceless reward that you get in return for some volunteering work."