Problem Based Learning Opportunities Through Engineers Without Borders

Engineers Without Borders (EWB) is an international organization that seeks to improve the quality of life of disadvantaged peoples around the world through water, sanitation, power, and structural engineering solutions. The City College of New York inaugurated their student chapter of the organization in 2005. Most of the 40 students who are involved in the chapter are in pursuit of undergraduate degrees in Civil, Mechanical, and Chemical Engineering, but there are also a handful of students pursuing degrees in Economics, Public Health, Spanish, and Communications. The student chapter is advised by a professionally licensed Environmental Engineer and faculty in the Civil Engineering (CE) Department at the CUNY City College of New York (CCNY). The chapter also receives guidance from a licensed Structural Engineer and CE faculty, and from a practicing licensed Environmental Engineer. Our first project is nearing completion. In this project, we are developing a potable water supply to serve over 350 people, distributed across several valleys in a mountainous region in Honduras. Even by Honduran standards, the people in this community are poor, with limited education, no power or sanitation system, and a periodically contaminated water supply that leads to infectious stomach and skin diseases. Our design will protect a spring, collect water from it, conduit the water over a mile of hilly tropical rainforest with dense vegetation and inconsistent geology, disinfect the water in a centralized tank located close to the community, and then distribute the treated water to several locations throughout the community. As a result of public health issues that were observed during our assessment trip, the chapter will also educate the community on practices to manage solid waste and improve ventilation in homes. The approximate cost to assess and implement this project is $35,000. EWB projects undertaken by student chapters follow the problem-based learning (PBL) approach by definition. Students work in small groups to investigate and solve an ill-structured real-world problem under the guidance of a facilitator in several steps: describe the problem, identify learning issues, conduct research and incorporate knowledge, and finally, assess. The PBL approach is believed to alter traditional teaching and learning patterns by allowing students to take charge of their own learning, develop a varied and deeper perspective and knowledge of the subject area and mimic the problem-solving that takes place in professional practice and in the normal workplace. Students participating in the CCNY EWB chapter assert that their participation in EWB helped them to develop new skills not taught in the classroom, such as proposal writing, project management, multi-disciplinary collaboration, assessment of social and economic impact, and social responsibility. They also assert that EWB has provided a unique opportunity for them to refine their grasp of concepts learned in class by applying their engineering and professionalism skills to important problems in real environments. Introduction P ge 12184.2 Engineers Without Borders (EWB-USA) is a non-profit humanitarian organization that partners with developing communities worldwide in order to improve their health and quality of life. Between 2002 and 2006, the organization grew from fewer than 100 members to more than 6,000 members. As of January 2007, there were 105 active student EWB chapters and 39 active professional chapters nationwide, and approximately 600 chapters in development. Most professional chapters provide support and mentoring for the student chapters, although some also take on projects on their own. Although most EWB projects require engineering design, environmental monitoring, public health assessment, accounting, and fundraising, few student or professional chapters have members that are not engineers or engineering students. The City College of New York (CCNY) student chapter of EWB is unique in that it has actively recruited engineering students as well as students pursuing degrees in Economics, Public Health, Spanish, and Communications. The CCNY EWB chapter is mostly made up of undergraduate students with varied levels of education, but also includes a few graduate students. Typically, the senior undergraduate engineering students possess the leadership roles and mentor the juniors and sophomores in administrative and engineering activities. The chapter is advised by a civil engineering faculty and licensed environmental engineer, and mentored by a few other civil engineering faculty and practicing engineers. Examples of EWB projects EWB projects occur in communities throughout the world, but a majority of them take place outside of the US. EWB projects are initiated by the communities themselves. The communities submit applications to EWB-USA, normally with the help of a Peace Corps volunteer or nongovernment organization representative working in their region. The application must identify and justify the need for the assistance of EWB. Most EWB projects are small in scope since the student or professional chapters are responsible for fundraising 100% of the costs of the project, which can range from $10,000 to $35,000. A vast majority of EWB projects address water, energy, and infrastructure needs, and involve the assessment of the viability of a proposed design, the construction and implementation of the design, and the evaluation of the impact of the design on the community. Explicit examples of components of typical EWB projects are listed below. Components of potable water system projects: • Assessment of terrain by surveying, soil type with borings, water availability by flowrate measurement, water quality by collecting samples for lab analysis of toxic compounds and turbidity and by plating water samples for coliform analysis • Assessment of community need for and potential uses of water • Assessment of current community health and relationship to current water practices • Assessment of the availability and specifications of locally available materials needed for design implementation • Design and construction of ground water wells and pumping systems P ge 12184.3 • Design and construction of spring boxes or covered retention embankments with overflow systems and erosion management drainage systems • Design and construction of covered water collection tanks and foundations with overflow systems, flow regulation valving, and erosion management drainage systems • Design and construction of trenched and above-ground water conduction pipelines with PVC or GI pipe, slip and treaded unions and couplers, flow regulation and drainage valving systems, overflow systems, erosion management drainage systems, and pipeline reinforcement with rebar and geosynthetics • Design and construction of water purification systems including settling, filtration and solar or chemical disinfection • Design and construction of water distribution systems of tapstands or smaller conduction lines to the homes • Education of community on safe washing practices that do not contaminate drinking water, need for disinfection, methods of disinfection, public health indications for the need for disinfection Components of ventilation systems projects: • Assessment of air quality issues inside and outside of the home • Assessment of community health and relationship to current ventilation practices • Assessment of the availability and specifications of locally available materials needed for design implementation • Design and construction of stoves that produce less smoke • Design and construction of chimneys to route cooking fumes out of the home, or natural cross-ventilation systems for the home • Education of community on safe incineration of solid waste including types of materials that can be safely incinerated, the use of masks, public health signs that indicate a need for ventilation Components of energy systems projects: • Assessment of opportunities for energy generation including surface water velocity, wind velocity and direction, or cloud coverage and solar intensity, and community need and potential uses of electricity • Assessment of the availability and specifications of locally available materials needed for design implementation • Design and construction of watermills and driveshafts, windmills, and solar panels • Design and construction of support structures for electricity generation systems • Design and construction of electrical storage and distribution systems • Education of community on maintenance of energy systems and safe disposal of batteries Components of infrastructure projects: • Assessment of terrain by surveying and soil type for purposes of siting and erosion management • Assessment of the availability and specifications of locally available materials needed for design implementation • Design and construction of toilets and bathing areas P ge 12184.4 • Design and construction of simple buildings on slabs within communities • Design and construction of roads and bridges to improve access to the community Project roles in EWB projects Even when EWB projects are not used as a problem-based learning opportunity, faculty and students must make much larger time commitments to the project development, design, and implementation than in student clubs such as Concrete Canoe and Steel Bridge. As with these other clubs, however, students of all levels and all disciplines can participate meaningfully. Faculty advisor: The CCNY EWB faculty advisor meets with the entire chapter regularly to address fundraising, administrative, student and faculty recruitment, project selection, and address issues related to the current project. Faculty technical lead: The technical lead is usually the faculty advisor, unless this faculty does not possess the expertise needed to conduct the project. The technical lead meets with the entire chapter once weekly for 2-4 hours to address engineering