Transcript Engineering-Education-Development

Challenges for Engineering:
Opportunities UNESCO and CAETS
International Council of Academies of
Engineering and Technological Sciences
CAETS Council Meeting, Brussels, 2 June 2006
Tony Marjoram
Senior Programme Specialist, Engineering
Division of Basic and Engineering Sciences, UNESCO
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Science at UNESCO
Natural Sciences Sector
Two overall programme themes areas:
1. Science, environment and sustainable development,
2. Capacity-building in science and technology for
development
Total staff: professional: 63, support: 49
Total budget: $58.2m (total UNESCO: $610m)
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Science – Divisions, staff, budgets
Water Sciences
21 Prof staff, $8.9m
Ecological and Earth Sciences
14 Prof staff, $4.2m (Ecology $2.8m; Earth $1.4m)
Basic and Engineering Sciences
11 Prof staff, $5.8 (BSc $4.6m; EngSc: $1.2m)
Science Policy and Sustainable Development
12 Prof staff, $1.1m
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Engineering at UNESCO
1960s-70s
Engineering the biggest activity in Science
Capacity building, heritage infrastructure projects
Later 1970s
Decline engineering, rise environmental sciences
1984 - US and UK depart UNESCO (re-join 2003, 1997)
Later 1980s
Further decline of engineering, focus on RE (WSP)
Increase in environmental science, particularly Water
Sciences
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Engineering at UNESCO
2002
Divisions of Engineering Sciences and Technology
and Basic Sciences merge into Division of Basic and
Engineering Sciences
Engineering now:
1 Prof staff, 1 support; budget: $0.57m
Renewable energy:
1 Prof staff, 1 support; budget: $0.45m
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Engineering activities at UNESCO
Capacity building in engineering and technology
Engineering and technology to address the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs), especially:
poverty reduction, sustainable development
Promoting international cooperation in engineering
Various extra-budgetary and related activities
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Capacity building in engineering
Capacity relates to:
human, institutional and infrastructure capacity
Capacity is vital for:
social economic development, MDGs, disaster response
Capacity building includes:
education, training, research, standards, policy and
planning, advocacy, accreditation, related issues
UNESCO Exec Board Decision in 2005 to develop:
Cross-Sectoral Activities in Technical Capacity-Building
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Engineering and poverty reduction
Poverty relates primarily to limited access of poor
people to knowledge to address basic human needs.
These include: water supply, sanitation, food, housing,
energy, transportation, communication, income.
Engineering and technology enable poor people to
alleviate poverty and promote livelihood development.
UNESCO Project:
Technology and Poverty Eradication (TAPE)
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Engineering for sustainable development
Engineering needs to address issues of sustainable
development, link to the Decade of Education for SD
Engineering activities need to focus on:
 environmental/ecological engineering
 waste management, water supply and sanitation
 cleaner production and recycling
 energy efficiency, conservation and renewables
International Workshop: Engineering Education
for Sustainable Development, Beijing, 1-3 November
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International cooperation in engineering
World Engineers’ Convention - 2000, 2004, 2008
?
UN Millennium Project Task Force on Sci, Tec and Innov
Other networking: EWB, ESW
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Extrabudgetary activities include:
Mondialogo Engineering Award, €300,000
US Voluntary contribution, $100k (support AAES study)
Virtual Engineering Library
for Sustainable Development
- pilot project based at the
University of Khartoum,
Sudan
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Engineering - publications
Information, learning and teaching materials:
Forthcoming:
Gender Indicators in Engineering, Science and Technology
Social Factors and Innovation: Renewable Energy in the Pacific
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Engineering – particular challenges
Engineering capacity and capacity building
Decline of interest/entry of young people into
engineering, especially women
perception: boring, hard work, poor pay, env impact
Effective development and application of
engineering to address the MDGs
Failure to meet challenges:
not enough engineers, brain drain,
impact on development and developing countries
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Needs and actions
Promote public understanding and perception of
engineering, gender issues
Make university courses more interesting
reform of curricula
problem-based learning (for problem-solving people)
just-in-time, hands-on engineering applications
Promote engineering as a part of the solution, rather
than part of the problem
eg problem-solving (eg EWB, ESW, Mondialogo)
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Possible UNESCO – CAETS cooperation
Capacity and capacity building
Need for better information - cooperation on
proposed study: ”Needs and Numbers: International
Study on Engineering and Engineering Education”
Reform of engineering education
Cooperation on activity/project/problem-based
learning, in conjunction with above study
Promote engineering applications
As part of the solution, problem-solving, for MDGs –
poverty reduction and sustainable development
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