Nourishing the Tree of Hope: An art piece about peace

Robyn Mae Paul; Laleh Behjat

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Conference: 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Publication Date: June 22, 2025
Start Date: June 22, 2025
End Date: August 15, 2025
Conference Session: An ECSJ Art Show - Equity and Justice through Art (Equity, Culture & Social Justice in Education Division ECSJ Technical Session 6)
Tagged Divisions: Equity and Culture & Social Justice in Education Division (EQUITY)
Tagged Topic: Diversity
Page Count: 11
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/57001

Paper Authors

biography

Robyn Mae Paul University of Calgary orcid.org/0000-0002-5619-5754

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Robyn Mae Paul is an Assistant Professor in the Sustainable Systems Engineering at the University of Calgary. Her research and teaching focuses on applying frameworks from social justice, queer theories, indigenous knowledges, and ecofeminism to broaden the narratives of engineering culture and foster more inclusive spaces and more socially just and sustainable engineering designs. She has achieved this work through tools including narrative inquiry, storytelling, and agent-based modeling.

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biography

Laleh Behjat University of Calgary

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Dr. Laleh Behjat is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Software Engineering at the University of Calgary and the NSERC Prairie Chair for Women in Science and Engineering. Her research interests include computer chip design, sustainable systems analysis and design, equity, diversity and inclusion, and engineering education. Dr. Behjat has been a member of several boards and councils, including the Google Council for Computer Science Education, and a co-organizer for the Design Automation Conference Young Professionals Program. Dr. Behjat has won several awards for her work, including the Engineer Canada Award for the Support of Women in the Engineering Profession and the Killam Award for Graduate Mentorship.
Dr. Behjat is advocating and working towards the implementation of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 3: Health and Well-being, SDG 4: Quality Education, SDG 5: Gender Equality, SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities and SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions.

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Abstract

This paper explores the intersection of engineering, violence, and peace through an arts-based project. Drawing from our lived experiences, we would like to build a narrative that highlights how engineering is deeply entwined with societal structures, including systems of oppression and colonialism. We have conceptualized our work as a tree. This tree is the representation of hope and peace as well as the engineering ecosystem.

The roots of the tree represent the foundations of our humanity. Our need for shelter, clean water, food, security, community and love. Meeting these basic needs are the reasons engineers do what they do. The body of the tree represents the engineering education. This body is generally considered as solid and solitary, disregarding the relationship between the tree and the rest of the world. Finally, the leaves of the tree are the stories of how humanity interacts with engineering and how engineering can help us achieve peace.

All parts of the tree are made with papers that have our experiences, stories, thoughts, discussions and research written on them. These experiences go back to our experiences growing up; one person during a war and the other growing up during peace but in a military family. These experiences form the foundations of our understanding of the roles that the engineers and the engineering profession play in the world.

As this is an interactive piece, we ask the conference participants to write and leave their stories in the tree. However, each person will also be asked to drop a marble into the base of the tree. These marbles are to represent the bombs and rockets that are made by engineers and will be used for destruction. The sizes of the balls vary based on the amount of military budget in the country that the participant is from. Once the weight of the marbles has reached a critical value, the tree will shake, making the leaves fall. The hope is by increasing the number of stories we leave; we will increase the hope that the tree of Hope survives.

Using a collaborative collage shaped like a tree, this work invites collective reflection on the role of engineers in perpetuating or challenging violence. Each leaf symbolizes a story or commitment to peace, while the tree’s periodic "shaking" represents systemic disruptions. By fostering community engagement, the project reimagines engineering as a force for justice, advocating for responsive pedagogy and transformative practices in engineering education.

This paper explores how engineering educators can foster a culture of peace by deconstructing oppressive norms and advocating for socially just practices. Drawing on the lived experiences of two faculty members, one from Canada and the other from Iran, we reflect on the intersections of engineering, violence, and peace through an arts-based research methodology.

Citation
Format

Paul, R. M., & Behjat, L. (2025, June), Nourishing the Tree of Hope: An art piece about peace Paper presented at 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Montreal, Quebec, Canada . https://peer.asee.org/57001

TY - CPAPER
AB - This paper explores the intersection of engineering, violence, and peace through an arts-based project. Drawing from our lived experiences, we would like to build a narrative that highlights how engineering is deeply entwined with societal structures, including systems of oppression and colonialism. We have conceptualized our work as a tree. This tree is the representation of hope and peace as well as the engineering ecosystem.

The roots of the tree represent the foundations of our humanity. Our need for shelter, clean water, food, security, community and love. Meeting these basic needs are the reasons engineers do what they do. The body of the tree represents the engineering education. This body is generally considered as solid and solitary, disregarding the relationship between the tree and the rest of the world. Finally, the leaves of the tree are the stories of how humanity interacts with engineering and how engineering can help us achieve peace.

All parts of the tree are made with papers that have our experiences, stories, thoughts, discussions and research written on them. These experiences go back to our experiences growing up; one person during a war and the other growing up during peace but in a military family. These experiences form the foundations of our understanding of the roles that the engineers and the engineering profession play in the world.

As this is an interactive piece, we ask the conference participants to write and leave their stories in the tree. However, each person will also be asked to drop a marble into the base of the tree. These marbles are to represent the bombs and rockets that are made by engineers and will be used for destruction. The sizes of the balls vary based on the amount of military budget in the country that the participant is from. Once the weight of the marbles has reached a critical value, the tree will shake, making the leaves fall. The hope is by increasing the number of stories we leave; we will increase the hope that the tree of Hope survives.

Using a collaborative collage shaped like a tree, this work invites collective reflection on the role of engineers in perpetuating or challenging violence. Each leaf symbolizes a story or commitment to peace, while the tree’s periodic &quot;shaking&quot; represents systemic disruptions. By fostering community engagement, the project reimagines engineering as a force for justice, advocating for responsive pedagogy and transformative practices in engineering education.

This paper explores how engineering educators can foster a culture of peace by deconstructing oppressive norms and advocating for socially just practices. Drawing on the lived experiences of two faculty members, one from Canada and the other from Iran, we reflect on the intersections of engineering, violence, and peace through an arts-based research methodology.

AU - Robyn Mae Paul
AU - Laleh Behjat
CY - Montreal, Quebec, Canada
DA - 2025/06/22
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Nourishing the Tree of Hope: An art piece about peace
UR - https://peer.asee.org/57001
ER -