Work-In-Progress: Re-Engineering Engineering: A Collaborative Inquiry Toward a Solidarity Engineering-Focused Future

Stephen Fernandez; Sarah Aileen Brownell; Ankita Kumar; Bailey Bond-Trittipo; Zoii Arrianna Henry; Corin L. Bowen

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Conference: 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Baltimore , Maryland
Publication Date: June 25, 2023
Start Date: June 25, 2023
End Date: June 28, 2023
Conference Session: Interdisciplinary Integration and Sociotechnical Thinking: The Big Picture
Tagged Division: Liberal Education/Engineering & Society Division (LEES)
Tagged Topic: Diversity
Page Count: 9
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--44427
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/44427
Download Count: 100

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Paper Authors

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Stephen Fernandez UMass Amherst

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Steve is currently employed in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion office in the College of Engineering at UMass Amherst. He works on outreach, community engagement, and student support and he teaches a class in Engineering Service-Learning. His background is in sustainable energy engineering. He has worked on the modeling and design of stand-alone hybrid photovoltaic / wind turbine systems. His professional experiences include secondary school STEM education, collegiate service-learning, and sustainable energy installations in Latin America. Steve has experience in multi-disciplinary collaborations, in addition to collaborations with businesses, non-profit organizations, and community- based organizations. Involved in efforts that engage communities in designing, implementing, and maintaining varied sustainable energy technologies and using them as vehicles for economic and community development.

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Sarah Aileen Brownell Rochester Institute of Technology (COE)

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Sarah Brownell is the Director of the Grand Challenges Scholars Program and a Lecturer in Design, Development and Manufacturing for the Kate Gleason College of Engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology. She works extensively with students in th

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Corin L. Bowen California State University, Los Angeles orcid.org/0000-0002-0910-8902

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Corin (Corey) Bowen is an Assistant Professor of Engineering Education, housed in the Department of Civil Engineering at California State University - Los Angeles. Her engineering education research focuses on structural oppression in engineering systems, organizing for equitable change, and developing an agenda of Engineering for the Common Good. She teaches structural mechanics and sociotechnical topics in engineering education and practice. Corey conferred her Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor in April 2021; her thesis included both technical and educational research. She also holds an M.S.E. in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor and a B.S.E. in civil engineering from Case Western Reserve University, both in the areas of structural engineering and solid mechanics.

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Abstract

What is the purpose of engineering? Who does engineering? Who is engineering done for? As engineering is increasingly associated with cutting edge technology and innovative advances in complex and/or large scale systems, these are questions that merit reflection. These trends tend to disproportionately benefit those in wealthy sectors of society. Simultaneously, those with the least economic wealth are often negatively impacted. But, engineering doesn’t have to continue along this path. It is instructive to reflect on the fact that engineering encompasses technologies and designs that have served much of the human population for ages. Engineering to meet basic human needs, such as working with the natural world toward sustainable food gathering practices, building homes and infrastructure, maintaining health, expressing humanity through the arts, and experiencing joy has been a major trend throughout human history. At the same time, engineering has also been used for destructive purposes, including the development of tools and processes that subjugate and inflict violence upon humans, other living things, and the environment. A critical juncture in the path that engineering has taken occurred during the 2nd Western Industrial Revolution from the mid 1800’s to the early 1900’s. During this time, enterprises for capitalist accumulation of wealth and power came to dominate the field of engineering and engineers became wedded to the interests of corporate capitalism. Today the legacy of this shift persists. While there continue to be engineers organizing and pursuing engineering for the wellbeing of humanity and the planet, pathways towards this work within our larger systems of engineering training and practice are unclear and involve higher levels of personal risk.

Our aim is to develop a vision of engineering that seeks to meet the needs of the planet and its inhabitants. Critical to this vision is the embrace of practices that center the participation of all people, particularly those from historically marginalized groups. The process of doing so must be authentic and inclusive. Using a framework of Solidarity Engineering, this paper lays out the authors’ process of critical reflection on the dominant practices and structures that need to change in engineering education and the engineering profession. As engineering education faculty, students, and support practitioners, we are engaging in a collaborative inquiry methodology to examine engineering education programs, recruitment, and curricula, and engineering career pathways to identify key practices that hinder learning about and working towards Solidarity Engineering. This work-in-progress presents a broad outline of work we are undertaking to explore what we call the “re-engineering” of both engineering education and of potential career pathways. Through our work, we hope to identify a broad set of solidarity-focused examples and methods. Further, we hope this paper inspires a larger conversation about how the engineering profession can reframe its ways of engaging within the world to promote a movement toward Solidarity Engineering that contributes to an ethic of care, love, equity, and justice among people and planet.

Citation
Format

Fernandez, S., & Brownell, S. A., & Kumar, A., & Bond-Trittipo, B., & Henry, Z. A., & Bowen, C. L. (2023, June), Work-In-Progress: Re-Engineering Engineering: A Collaborative Inquiry Toward a Solidarity Engineering-Focused Future Paper presented at 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Baltimore , Maryland. 10.18260/1-2--44427

TY - CPAPER
AB - What is the purpose of engineering? Who does engineering? Who is engineering done for? As engineering is increasingly associated with cutting edge technology and innovative advances in complex and/or large scale systems, these are questions that merit reflection. These trends tend to disproportionately benefit those in wealthy sectors of society. Simultaneously, those with the least economic wealth are often negatively impacted. But, engineering doesn’t have to continue along this path. It is instructive to reflect on the fact that engineering encompasses technologies and designs that have served much of the human population for ages. Engineering to meet basic human needs, such as working with the natural world toward sustainable food gathering practices, building homes and infrastructure, maintaining health, expressing humanity through the arts, and experiencing joy has been a major trend throughout human history. At the same time, engineering has also been used for destructive purposes, including the development of tools and processes that subjugate and inflict violence upon humans, other living things, and the environment. A critical juncture in the path that engineering has taken occurred during the 2nd Western Industrial Revolution from the mid 1800’s to the early 1900’s. During this time, enterprises for capitalist accumulation of wealth and power came to dominate the field of engineering and engineers became wedded to the interests of corporate capitalism. Today the legacy of this shift persists. While there continue to be engineers organizing and pursuing engineering for the wellbeing of humanity and the planet, pathways towards this work within our larger systems of engineering training and practice are unclear and involve higher levels of personal risk.

Our aim is to develop a vision of engineering that seeks to meet the needs of the planet and its inhabitants. Critical to this vision is the embrace of practices that center the participation of all people, particularly those from historically marginalized groups. The process of doing so must be authentic and inclusive. Using a framework of Solidarity Engineering, this paper lays out the authors’ process of critical reflection on the dominant practices and structures that need to change in engineering education and the engineering profession. As engineering education faculty, students, and support practitioners, we are engaging in a collaborative inquiry methodology to examine engineering education programs, recruitment, and curricula, and engineering career pathways to identify key practices that hinder learning about and working towards Solidarity Engineering. This work-in-progress presents a broad outline of work we are undertaking to explore what we call the “re-engineering” of both engineering education and of potential career pathways. Through our work, we hope to identify a broad set of solidarity-focused examples and methods. Further, we hope this paper inspires a larger conversation about how the engineering profession can reframe its ways of engaging within the world to promote a movement toward Solidarity Engineering that contributes to an ethic of care, love, equity, and justice among people and planet.
AU - Stephen Fernandez
AU - Sarah Aileen Brownell
AU - Ankita Kumar
AU - Bailey Bond-Trittipo
AU - Zoii Arrianna Henry
AU - Corin L. Bowen
CY - Baltimore , Maryland
DA - 2023/06/25
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Work-In-Progress: Re-Engineering Engineering: A Collaborative Inquiry Toward a Solidarity Engineering-Focused Future
UR - https://peer.asee.org/44427
DO - 10.18260/1-2--44427
ER -