Preparing Sustainable Engineers: A Project-Based Learning Experience in Logistics with Refugee Camps

María-José Terrón-López,María Del Carmen Espinosa-Elvira,Paloma J Velasco-Quintana,Silvia Lavado-Anguera

doi:10.3390/su12124817

María-José Terrón-López, María Del Carmen Espinosa-Elvira + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/su12124817

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Journal: Sustainability	Publication Date: Jun 12, 2020
Citations: 12	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: European University of Madrid

Abstract

This article describes an intrinsic case study of project-based learning (PBL) experience involving an NGO as an external client to promote sustainability competencies. Two research questions are posed: (1) How did this experiential PBL approach impact students learning to develop sustainability competencies by incorporating a responsible engineering perspective? (2) How did college students become engaged with social and sustainable PBL projects when external clients of developing economies were involved? The project-based design involved two subjects in the second year of an Industrial engineering degree. The client was an NGO with an existing project to improve the supply chain logistics of three refugee camps managed by women. Students had to cooperatively develop a sustainable proposal for the NGO with a global mindset. Findings obtained from the analysis of the reflections of students and teachers indicate that this methodology helps students to acquire comprehensively learning outcomes and to develop sustainability competencies. Sustainable and socially responsible engineering were achieved through a methodology that considers the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and engages students in real projects. This approach promotes student awareness on the importance of their actions and their personal behavior as engineers, including a gender perspective, while training them to move towards SDG4 and 5.

Highlights

In 2004, the Declaration of Barcelona [1] supported that engineering education should prepare their students to work in a globalized world
The United Nations has attempted to implement several strategies to achieve sustainability, first with the approval of the Millennium Development Goals [3] followed by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030
The aim of this paper is to describe an intrinsic case study where a project-based learning experience was used that incorporates a multi-factorial perspective on sustainability competencies, and how students perceived the experience

Summary

Introduction

In 2004, the Declaration of Barcelona [1] supported that engineering education should prepare their students to work in a globalized world. The ‘Shanghai Declaration on Engineering and the Sustainable Future’ [2] called upon the engineering community, as well as governments and international organizations, to promote engineering for a sustainable future. Nowadays, must address the complex issue of social sustainability. The United Nations has attempted to implement several strategies to achieve sustainability, first with the approval of the Millennium Development Goals [3] followed by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030. Universities must teach students to be drivers of innovation, social commitment and economic development [6,7,8].

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