Abstract
The concepts, issues, and themes surrounding the definition of sustainability is discussed in this paper, as it is presented in a first year undergraduate engineering course called "Sustainability in Engineering Design" at the University of Prince Edward Island. Students incorporate, reflect upon, and analyze many examples and aspects of sustainability. Students are introduced to practical frameworks which they use to formulate their own definition of what sustainability means in engineering design. Students work in teams to analyze and articulate the impact that technological innovation and engineering design has on sustainability. As a result, an understanding of sustainability is established such that students are able to design for, articulate, quantify, and lead with a "sustainability mindset". The topics in the course "Sustainability in Engineering Design" are built upon in subsequent, advanced courses in manufacturing, robotics, renewable energy systems, and bioresources. As such, this work discusses the perspective of the future engineer as a global citizen, critical thinker, and problem solver who is able to consider the social, economic, environmental, cultural factors, and their inter-relationships, contributing to the understanding of sustainability in the engineering design process.
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