The University
Senate of
PROPOSAL 06-07
(Voting
Units: Academic)
PROPOSAL FOR AN UNDERGRADUATE
CERTIFICATE IN
INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINBLE DEVELOPMENT
ENGINEERING
Submitted (March 3, 2006) by the
Department of Civil & Environmental
Engineering
and the Sustainable Futures Institute
Revised (March 29, 2006)
Revised (April 18, 2006)
Revised (September 29, 2006)
Introduction
This proposal recommends establishing a formal Undergraduate Certificate in International
Sustainable Development Engineering. In 1992, Maurice Strong, Secretary
General of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development,
stated that “The concept of sustainable development would be impossible without
the full input of engineers.” Sustainable
development is defined as “development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of the future to meet its needs” (Our Common Future, 1987).
In the coming decades engineers will contribute to
the eradication of poverty, hunger and disease by promoting sustainable
resource utilization, appropriate technology, beneficial infrastructure, and
social change. The goal of this
undergraduate certificate is to enable students to become effective agents for
international sustainable development.
The certificate requires that students complete a 6-credit design
project during their senior year that will take place in a developing community. In the past six years, the International
Senior Design course has provided 105 students a capstone design engineering
experience set in a developing nation (e.g.,
Rationale
Society, the
environment, and economic/industrial development - the “triple bottom line” -
are inherently interconnected, both domestically and globally. Without fundamental changes in current
engineering practice, the future is in jeopardy. Healthy societies require a sustainable
future, in which human and industrial systems support an enhanced well-being of all living systems on the planet by
recognizing and seeking to understand their interconnectivity. Change must begin in the place where most
change is born – within our nation’s universities.
While
engineering students take general education courses in world cultures, history,
and geography, a meaningful sustainable development education would include a
significant international engineering experience. Of the nearly 175,000 American students that
studied abroad in 2003, only 3% were engineering students, which is only 1% of
the Americans students enrolled in engineering programs (American Association of Engineering Societies) Over the last twenty years the number and
proportion of engineering students studying abroad has increased, but very
slowly. For decades, international
programs have not offered options designed for engineering students, but
universities are beginning to see benefits in study-abroad for engineers, and
some engineering students are also branching into humanities studies such as languages,
social science, cultural studies, and public policy.
Upon
graduation students will have gained skills for working in diverse
interdisciplinary teams, consensus building, appreciation for how engineering
can assist the global community, critical thinking, oral and written
communication as well as community service. The National Academy of Engineering
called for such engineering education in their recent report, “The Engineer of
2020.” The
pedagogy in the International Sustainable Development Engineering certificate will be based on problem-based learning and will integrate
service learning and an international field experience into the classroom. Students may continue their education
in one of Michigan Tech Master’s International Programs or through the Graduate
Certificate in Sustainability.
We
have high expectations. We intend that
graduates from this certificate program will become influential leaders of
society. We are training students in
ways of thinking that are desperately needed to solve our current and future
world problems. They will be uniquely suited to meet the challenges of business
and government as well as to pursue research, public service and academia
through higher education. With the unique
required core experiences in this program as a foundation, we feel confident
that graduates will be making a difference at all levels of society—from their
personal lives to international affairs.
Through elective courses, students will be able to accumulate additional
technical training in their sustainability studies.
I.
Title
of Certificate
International
Sustainable Development Engineering
II.
Catalog
Description
The goal of
sustainable engineering is to create
ecologically and socially appropriate solutions within the capacity of nature
without compromising future generations.
This certificate provides students breadth in the areas of ethics,
resource equity, interactions between technology and society, engineering
connections with the environment,
engineering materials and water/sanitation, all at a global
perspective. An international senior
design experience that requires students to work on an engineering problem set
in the developing world is required to complete the certificate.
III. List of
Courses
Page 4
contains a figure that shows how courses are taken over the four years.
Required courses (16 credits)
·
ENG3530 Undergraduate
Colloquium in Sustainability (1 credit)
·
BA4790 Ecology and
Organizations (preferred) or BA4600
Management of Technology and Innovation or
BA4780 International Business Communication
(3 credits)
·
CE3503 Introduction
to Environmental Engineering (preferred) or
CE3501 Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering (3 credits)
·
HU2702 Ethical Theory
and Moral Problems or HU4625 Risk
Communication (3 credits)
·
CE4905/CE4990
International Senior Design (6 credits)
French/Spanish
Language or Culture Elective (Choose at least one 3-credit course from the following list)
·
HU 2271 - Level I-A French
Language and Culture
·
HU 2272 - Level I-B French
Language and Culture
·
HU 2273 - Transitional Level I
French Language and Culture
·
HU 3262 - Topics in Francophone Cultures
·
HU 3271 - Level II-A French
Language and Culture
·
HU 3272 - Level II-B French
Language and Culture
·
HU 3273 - Level II French
Composition and Conversation
·
HU 2291 - Level I-A Spanish
Language and Culture
·
HU 2292 - Level I-B Spanish
Language and Culture
·
HU 2293 - Transitional Level I
Spanish Language and Culture
·
HU 3264 - Topics in
Spanish-Speaking Cultures
·
HU 3291 - Level II Spanish
Language and Culture
·
HU 3292 - Level II-B Spanish
Language and Culture
·
HU 3293 - Level II Spanish for
Special Purposes
Technology and
Society Elective (Choose at least one 3-credit course from the following list)
·
SS2800 Science,
Technology, & Society
·
SS3580 Technology and
Western Civilization
·
SS3620 International
Environmental Technology Policy
·
SS3800 Energy
Technology and Policy
·
SS3810 Culture,
Science & Technology
·
SS3890 Industry and
the World Economy
Total Requirements: 22 credits
IV. Pre-Requisites
BA4600
(senior standing)
BA4780 (UN1001 and (UN1002 or UN1003) and UN2001 and
UN2002
BA4790 (UN2002)
CE3501
(MA 2150 or MA 2160) and (CH 1100 or CH 1110)
CE3503
(MA 2150 or MA 2160) and (CH 1100 or CH 1110)
HU2272 (HU2271)
HU3262 (UN1002 or UN1003)
HU3271
(HU2272 or HU2273)
HU3272
(HU3271)
HU3273
(HU2272 or HU2273)
HU2292
(HU2291)
HU3264 (UN1002 or UN1003)
HU3291 (HU2292 or HU2293)
HU3292
(HU3291)
HU3293 (HU2293 or HU3291 or HU3292)
HU4625 (UN2002)
SS3580, SS3620, SS3800, SS3810, SS3890 (UN2002)
V. New Courses
None
VI.
Estimated
Costs
There
is no additional cost in introducing an Undergraduate Certificate in
International Sustainable Development Engineering. All courses (except ENG3530)
identified above are either required or elective courses available to all
students who satisfy course prerequisites. All of the courses are offered on a
regular basis except ENG3530 which was added to the catalog for the 2005-2006
year. The Technology and Society
Elective and the French/Spanish Language/Culture Elective allow a student a
wide variety of selection.
VII.
Planned
Implementation Date
Spring 2007
Adopted by Senate: 8 November 2006