Sustainability in civil engineering education: why, what, when, where and how

Fenner, Richard; Cruickshank, Heather; Ainger, Charles

doi:10.1680/ensu.14.00002

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 11 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In this period, the research focus was balanced between what to teach and how to teach it. An influential group of publications continued the focus on Standard 2, examining the relevance of developing students’ conceptions of the complexity, uncertainty, risk, values, system and critical thinking, ethics and context as basic knowledge needed to engage in sustainability (Byrne and Mullally, 2014; Cao, 2015; Fenner et al , 2014). As Figure 8 shows, the focus on ethics and social sustainability was prominent as a part of the motor theme for engineering education.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolution of sustainability in engineering education research: a longitudinal analysis through bibliometrics and the CDIO initiative

Alarcon-Pereira

Rampasso

Tapia-Ubeda

et al. 2023

IJSHE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose Considering the relevance of education for sustainable development (SD) to enhancing engineers’ abilities to contribute towards sustainability-related issues, this study aims to help understand the global context of the insertion of SD into engineering education and to provide guidelines to further evolve research and efforts towards implementing Engineering Education for Sustainable Development (EESD). Design/methodology/approach This study performed a longitudinal analysis using bibliometrics and a content analysis via Conceive–Design–Implement–Operate standards. SciMAT software was used to support the bibliometric analysis. Findings In addition to an increase in the practical aspects presented due to a change in the approaches taken to examine key topics, evidence on important concepts such as “life cycle assessment” and “digitalisation” increased in more recent years. However, it was possible to show that, despite the evolution observed throughout the years, several important opportunities exist for engineering programmes to improve and, for researchers, to fill the related gaps in the research. Originality/value This study can be used as a guide for future research and as a source of insights for EESD implementation and improvement.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolution of sustainability in engineering education research: a longitudinal analysis through bibliometrics and the CDIO initiative

Alarcon-Pereira

Rampasso

Tapia-Ubeda

et al. 2023

IJSHE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…They use creative thinking to develop processes and strategies, and systems and artefacts, which in many cases are required to function for decades, and sometimes even centuries ( (Balmforth, 2015) and for an example, see de Silva & Paris (2015)). This means that engineers are well placed to affect progress towards sustainability, resilience and liveability (Pearce, et al, 2012), and are encouraged to do so -not least through this Journal: see Fenner, et al, (2006) for an early perspective and Fenner, et al, (2014) and Byrne & Mullally (2014) for implications for civil engineering education. Sustainability has been much defined, being enriched from Brundtland's (1987) oft-quoted concept of intergenerational equity and opportunity by a multitude of insights published in this journal.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Liveable Cities Method: establishing the case for transformative change for a UK metro

Leach

Rogers

Ortegón-Sanchez

et al. 2020

Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Engineering

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There is currently great interest in the creation of sustainable and liveable cities, both in the UK and globally. While it can be argued that good progress is being made in thinking about the needs of future cities, meeting these needs and aspirations in practice poses major challenges of understanding and measurement (what is meant by these terms and how can progress towards their achievement be measured?), complexity (cities are complex systems of systems with many interacting parts) and resilience (will interventions made today be relevant and effective in the future?). The Liveable Cities research programme created a systematic decision-making method for improving urban sustainability and liveability: the Liveable Cities Method (LCM). The LCM prioritises four criteria – individual and societal well-being, resource security, resource efficiency and carbon dioxide emissions as a proxy for environmental harm – in an interconnected framework and assesses the need for, and the resilience of, interventions designed to move cities towards improved sustainability and liveability. This paper illustrates the LCM through an example intervention made to the city of Birmingham, UK, and highlights how addressing sustainability and liveability in this way offers unique opportunities for the UK civil engineering profession to lead thinking among urban professionals.

show abstract

“…Therefore, engineers, especially Civil Engineers, should be able to respond to societies' concerns about the impact of human activity on the environment. Civil engineers are responsible for designing the critical infrastructure which provides the basic services that allow operations of modern communities [2]. However, recent events have shown infrastructure systems to be vulnerable to natural events because many infrastructure systems are reaching the end of their intended design life.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrating Ecology and Sustainability into Civil Engineering Design: A Civil Engineering Capstone Project

Wang,

Cope

2022 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Because of the increasing demand from the industry to develop sustainable solutions, it has become essential for engineering educators to teach students the knowledge and skills to engage in sustainable design. The application of sustainability principles when considering physical structures can lead to the formation of more sustainable solutions to various civil engineering issues. Erosion control is one of the situations where ecology would be most useful. In this project, a nature center located in northwest Ohio is home to 109 acres of natural forests and farmland, has been experiencing erosion problems from water runoff. Students were tasked with designing an erosion system to prevent runoff and manage stormwater. It is easy to become engrained in the traditional grey infrastructure solutions that have grown so common in society. Instead, the team developed a design that contributes to the natural ecology of the site and constructs a new sustainable habitat for the wildlife in the area. To construct this new green solution, the team chose to incorporate a multitude of grass swales, check dams, and adaptive vegetation. The adaptive vegetation and grass swales are used to create new habitats for the wildlife around the site, which helps to make the site sustainable by providing more usable space and resources for the wildlife that live in the area. Check dams considered as grey infrastructure are constructed to eradicate the current runoff issue. The goal is to blend grey and green infrastructure solutions to develop a sustainable solution for the ecosystem and environment. This project not only requires students to apply the knowledge of Civil Engineering in designing the structures but also to learn about ecology to promote sustainability for the local community. This paper outlines the entire design process from conception to completion, with emphasis on problem definition, development of design concepts, interactions with stakeholders, and development of the detailed design. The project provides a design challenge that motivates and promotes students' problem-solving and independent learning skills as engineers, according to the assessment results and feedback from professionals regarding students' design outcomes. This project would be helpful to educators exploring Civil Engineering projects involving community engagement, sustainability, and multi-discipline engineering knowledge.

show abstract

Sustainability in civil engineering education: why, what, when, where and how

Cited by 3 publications

References 11 publications

The evolution of sustainability in engineering education research: a longitudinal analysis through bibliometrics and the CDIO initiative

The evolution of sustainability in engineering education research: a longitudinal analysis through bibliometrics and the CDIO initiative

The Liveable Cities Method: establishing the case for transformative change for a UK metro

Integrating Ecology and Sustainability into Civil Engineering Design: A Civil Engineering Capstone Project

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About