Engineers Without Borders Mobilise Engineering Community to Create Massive Small Change to Tackle Global Problems

Online, June 25, 2013 (Newswire.com) - The conference aimed at showcasing and emphasising engineers' potential to tackle global problems by applying understanding of social needs in creating the physical and virtual environments conducive of sustainable human development. The event sponsored by Bechtel and Mott MacDonald attracted over two hundred engineers from civil and structural, to chemical, electronic and software engineers, as well as architects and development workers.

Engineers Without Borders UK work with their members and academic, corporate and international partners to inspire, inform and support the move of the entire engineering profession towards global engineering. Global engineering or engineering without borders means contextualised work in applying appropriate technologies to respond to people's needs effectively and compassionately.

The day offered a transformational learning experience to attendees beginning with a talk from Kelvin Campbell, author of "Massive Small", on ideas for systemic approaches to urban environments that enable and empower people - ideas which resonated with new approaches to international development engineering.

Conference provided the diverse audience with a number of excellent case studies from across the world and a range of disciplines, where engineers made small changes responding to social context that created massive impact for the people. Himanshu Parikh talked about his work on networking small scale improvements in slum infrastructure and housing, changing lives of half a million people in India to date. Mike Kang of EWB Canada and Sam Parker of Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor, talked about the need for co-ordinated action across sectors where engineering is simply a part of the effective solution. The conference has also seen workshops showcasing importance of innovation in technologies as well as business models for delivering benefits of current science and engineering to developing communities, including that by Azuri Technologies, recent Ashden Awards laureate.

Bechtel and Ramboll, the corporate supporters of the EWB-UK, have given insights into appropriate technology use by the industry and connecting big infrastructure projects in developing countries with small changes in strategies that can yield massive impact, extending the positive social effects of the physical developments.

Mike de Silva, Sustainability Manager at Bechtel said:
"Bechtel's master planning work in Gabon is creating national solutions to future infrastructure needs, but communities can benefit immediately through small changes. For example, the waste management strategy that we have developed - our team is designing the first purpose built landfill but staff volunteers are also working with EWB-UK to address local behaviours and minimize waste at source. By combining both approaches, we hope to help develop a cost-effective sustainable solution for the long-term".

Sakthy Selvakumaran from Ramboll UK and Joe Mulligan from KDI in Nigeria, long term volunteers of EWB-UK, shared their insights and experiences working as engineers without borders between sectors and countries and how the motivation to drive positive change for communities they serve as engineers helps them to pursue their carriers for professional and personal fulfilment.

Peter Hansford, the Chairman of EWB-UK and the Government Chief Construction Adviser said:
"The construction industry has a lot to learn from Engineers Without Borders, as has the engineering profession as a whole. Ever since I have become involved with EWB-UK on its Board of Trustees, I was inspired by the concept of massive small change. I am now involved in setting a long term vision of programmatic change in the construction industry in this country, which I hope will be a small policy step for a massive effect in the way the profession is being practised.

"Engineers work for people and literally build communities. We have to take the realities of the users as well as sustainability of our solutions very seriously into account. I would like to encourage all engineers to reflect on their ability to work with people and to take to heart the great examples of massive small change we have been presented with today."

The Massive Small Change Conference was an open event organised by volunteers involved in the EWB-UK Professional Network. Engineers across the country can join the network and become part of the engineers without borders movement.