Service Learning On An International Scale: The Experiences Of Tufts University

There has been tremendous growth in the use of service learning in environmental engineering, especially in experiences beyond the U.S. This growth has been fostered by groups such as Global Village Engineers and Engineers Without Borders who seek to help communities in developing nations have a “better way” of life. Tufts University, long recognized for providing service to its host communities in Massachusetts, has also seen an increase in studentdriven initiatives that are beyond U.S. borders. Over the last year, students in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Tufts University have engaged in a number of projects in communities in Nicaragua and Ghana. This paper describes these projects, in terms of the engineering aspects, but also discusses the value these projects have in the education of the involved students. It is concluded that service learning projects, in general, provide a valuable pedagogical tool for educating future engineers.