SUNY-ESF Engineering for a Sustainable Society: Changing the World One Community at a Time
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Authors
Taylor, Benjamin S.
Issue Date
2015-04-10
Type
poster_presentation
Language
en_US
Keywords
Sustainability , Humanitarian Relief , Engineering , Engineers Without Borders , SUNY ESF
Alternative Title
Abstract
Students at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) started humanitarian engineering clubs called Engineering for a Sustainable Society Club and Engineers Without Borders Club (jointly, ESS/EWB) to achieve the student ambitions of improving the world putting theory into practice. Each humanitarian engineering project managed by the ESF students in these clubs has the goal of delivering more ecosystem and engineered services to benefit those with the greatest need while addressing environmental, economic, and social sustainability criteria. For every trip, design, and implementation project ESS/EWB adopts, the clubs dedicate 1000s of person hours to research on appropriate humanitarian engineering methods; most students have taken ESFs Humanitarian Engineering course to train in these methods. Over time members have expanded their knowledge of erosion control, water treatment and supply, hydro-electric generation, photovoltaic installation, sustainable construction, and cultural diversity as well as technical skills including professional reporting and communication, computer aided design, and mapping. The ESS/EWB clubs have successfully created an erosion management plan to protect coral reefs in Roatan, Honduras, funded and built a community water supply for a village in Honduras, brought solar panels and new hydroelectric generator technology to a village in Peru and Dominica, and initiated new projects for watershed reforestation and soil regeneration through human waste composting for areas of Haiti and improving sanitation conditions for a primary school in the Palajunoj Valley in Guatemala. The ESS/EWB clubs are empowering communities to sustain their resources while improving their quality of life. The ESS/EWB clubs plan to continue to revolutionize humanitarian relief across the globe by providing long-term, innovative, and sustainable solutions for generations to come.