Incorporating Sustainability into the Civil Engineering curriculum via cross course collaborations

Civil engineers play a significant role in designing, constructing, and maintaining systems. Concepts of sustainability are critical components to civil engineers’ education. Professors at the University of Pittsburgh (UPitt) and Arizona State University (ASU) have collaborated to integrate sustainability into the Civil Engineering curriculum in two manners; first, via target sustainability units and/or labs that are integrated into traditional courses and second, via the creation of new courses whose foci are on sustainability. We present and discuss the development and value in understanding student perceptions of sustainability through two sustainability labs, Infrared Thermography (IRT) Energy Audit Lab and Sustainable Materials Design Lab, and their implementation into three collaborative courses, Introduction to Nondestructive Evaluation and Structural Health Monitoring (NDE), Design for the Environment (DfE), and Green Buildings: Design and Construction (GB), that have been designed to enhance the learning of sustainability concepts. Preand post-assessment surveys were administered to assess changes in student perceptions of sustainability concepts and applications over a four-year period. Survey results present changes in perceptions of sustainability concepts and applications over time as a result of the active and experiential learning units and classes. The concurrent teaching of these sustainability units and classes at UPitt and ASU enhanced student collaboration within and across universities, reinforcing the potential for future cross-course, multi-university active and experiential learning partnerships.