Engineers Without Borders reaches first-year engineering curriculum

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/EWB.jpg” caption=”First-year engineering students, from left, Alex Packman, Ling Tsou, Rajbir Bal and Chi Ng, pose with one of the projects created in the first-year engineering 1P03 design course.”]This year was a successful year for the McMaster chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB). Founded in 2000, the international charitable organization is dedicated to providing access to technologies to developing countries around the world to break economic, social and judicial barriers. EWB's national membership has grown exponentially over the past five years to include 6,000 members nationwide with chapters in 22 Canadian universities. But growth hasn't stopped there as this past year McMaster was one of the first Canadian universities to extend the scope of first-year engineering design to incorporate international development activities.

McMaster's popular first-year engineering 1P03 design course (about 800 first-year engineering students are enrolled) now includes EWB fostered projects. Nine of 14 projects challenged students to provide solutions specific to technological barriers encountered in developing countries. These nine projects were developed by the EWB national office in co-operation with each McMaster engineering department, and were based on current issues being addressed abroad. Topics included designing an effective rainwater collection unit for the Nilgiris District in Southern India, processing of Jatropha oil extracts to yield biodiesel for regions in Burkina Faso, and design of a ceramic water filter for regions of Cambodia without access to safe drinking water.

From Feb. 14 to 18, students presented and defended their design solutions to their professors, fellow students and some EWB chapter representatives. When asked about the impact that their project topic had on them, students embraced the idea of contributing their ideas and skills for a socially responsible cause. It also gave them the opportunity to value the complexity involved in international development and about the importance of understanding the social, economic and cultural implications involved in implementing locally developed technology. Not only did the projects prompt creative thinking about technology, it provoked thinking about how to develop the capacity for the local population to create, operate and maintain their own systems.

As a result, each engineering department offered concrete examples of the applicability of the skills they offer, while the students gained an appreciation for the holistic aspect of their profession.

For more information on McMaster's Engineers Without Borders, visit www.mcmaster.ewb.ca.