Engineering

for Sustainable Development Study Guide

Someofyoumaybeasking,whereisthiscoursetakingus?WhatdoIhavetostudyandlearn? Itsnotobvious. ThefirstaspectofEngineeringforSustainableDevelopmentisEngineering. Nearlyallofyourdegreecoursehasbeenaimedathelpingyoulearnengineeringscience.Afteryou graduate,youwilluseittomakeaccuratepredictionsbasedonthescienceandmathematics.Most assessmentshaverequiredyoutowritesolutionstosimplesciencebasedanalysisproblems. However,tobeausefulengineer,youneedtobemorethanawriter. Youhavetodeliverpracticalresultsandmakeyourpredictionscometrue.Thatrequiresmorethan justwriting. Thatswhythiscoursestartswithanintroductiontoengineeringpracticeandprojectmanagement: deliveringpredictableresultsfromunpredictablepeople.Thecoursealsointroducessustainability ideasthatarecriticalforengineeringinindustry.Engineeringfirmsconsidersustainability,inan economicsense,aswellasconstraintsonwatersupplyanddisposal,energysupplies,atmospheric emissionsandgainingasociallicencetooperatetobetheirnumberoneissue. Technicalsolutionswrittenbyyouarenousetoanyoneuntilyoucanlearnhowtoinfluenceother peopletolisten,andthenlearnfromandfollowyoursolutions. Thatsnoteasy. Youhavetolearntheskillstodothatbydoing:participatinginthepracticalexercises,andthen reflectingonwhatyoudidandhowotherpeopleresponded.Takingpartinwritingthe managementplanwillhelpyoulearnaboutthekindsofdocumentsthatengineershavetoprepare toseekapprovalforprojects. Thefirstpracticalexercisesimulatesengineeringpracticeandgivesyouahandsonlearningexercise inprojectmanagement.Thereisnotenoughtimeprovidedtodoeverythingthatyoucouldforthe practical,particularlypreparingthemanagementplandocument.Youhavetoprioritizeandjointly decidewhatsimportantforyourteam. Thepracticalalsohelpsyoulearnhowtorunanengineeringprojectwhichcouldresultinharm unlessyouplanitandimplementitverycarefully.Asanengineer,youwillhavetodothatmany timesinyourcareer. Thepracticalexerciseisalsodesignedtobefunandenjoyable,thoughpartsofitarehardand requiresomephysicalexertion.Youwillfindyouneedtodoalotofreadingandworkhardduring theremainingweeksleadinguptothedayofthepractical.Afterthat,theworkloadwilleaseoffto allowyoutimetogetonwithothercoursework. Youmaystillask,So,whatshouldIbestudying?

Thisyear,IhavewrittenthebookHowtobecomeanexpertengineersothatyouhavesome readingmaterialtostudy.However,itwillonlymakesensetoyouifyouputyourreadinginto practice.Ifyouareworkingparttime,youmayalsofindlotsofopportunitiestousetheideasfrom thebookatwork,evenifyouarenotworkinginanengineeringjob. Oncethepracticaliscompleted,wewillmoveontothemainsustainabilityissuesthataffect practicallyallengineeringenterprisesandlieatthecoreofhumancivilisation:waterandenergy. Youwillalsolearnaboutrelevantfinancialissues. Asyouhavealreadylearned,everyonehasdifferentideasonsustainability,whatitmeans,andhow toachieveit.Tohelpyouappreciatetheideasthatwillbeinfluencingyourwork,Ihavearranged severalhighprofilespeakers. Bylisteningcarefullytoeachone,youwilllearnadifferentperspectiveonsustainabilityandthe engineeringbusiness.Takenotes:dontrelyonthepresentationslides:notallthespeakerswill prepareslides.Manyofthemostvaluablethingstheysaywillnotbeonslides. Ourguestlecturersinclude: LancePerryLawyerforAlcoaresponsibleforsecuringenvironmentalapprovals, IanMunroManagerofContaminatedSitesBranchEnforcementattheEnvironmentalProtection Authority, BobHumphriesformerbiologist,nowManagerofsustainabilityattheWAWaterCorporation PeterMartinoelectricalengineer,nowNetworkengineer,WesternPower,responsibleforsmart gridtechnologyandachievingthe20%renewablegenerationtargetby2020. MichaelChaneyformergeologistandnowChairmanoftheboardofNationalAustraliaBankand WoodsidePetroleum,(alsoChancelloroftheuniversity), BillBowmanformerlygraduatemechanicalengineerfromUWA,PhDinlubrication,nowassesses successandfailureofcapitalexpansionprojectsinoilandgasindustryandmineralindustriesinWA PaulHardistyenvironmentalengineer,worldwidedirectorforsustainabilityatWorleyParsons, alsoprofessoratImperialCollege,London, PeterNewmandirectorofCurtinUniversitySustainabilityPolicyInstitute. PaulGamblinWAdirectoroftheWorldWildlifeFund WayneEdgeloeWatersupplyandrecyclingconsultantforruralcommunities KatieGwynneAlcoaenvironmentalengineer MoststayforlunchaftertheThursdaylecturetimeslot,orcomeforbreakfastbeforetheFriday timeslot,andyouarewelcometojoinusforaninformalchatatthosetimes(subjecttospace availability,youwillalsoneedtobedressedappropriatelysmartcasual).

Inthesecondhalfofthesemester,youwilltakepartinasimulatedroleplayingnegotiation practical.Inthisexercise,youwillrepresentoneofthestakeholdersinamajorWAproject.In previousyears,forexample,weusedalargescalesolarpowerplantprojectproposedforthemid westregionofWA,andrenewablepowergenerationforminingcompaniesnearRavensthorpe. Dependingonwhichteamyougetallocatedto,youmayberepresentinganAboriginalLands Council,astategovernmentdepartment,anengineeringfirm,abank,tradeunionsorother organisationsaffectedbytheproject. Youwillresearchtheirinterests,values,requirementsandexpectations,andthensitatanegotiation tablewithteamsrepresentingtheotherstakeholders.Youwilldoyourbesttoadvancetheinterests ofthestakeholdersyourepresent,andhavesomefunlearningnegotiationtactics. Negotiationisakeyskillyouwillneedasaprofessionalengineer.Yourfirstrealnegotiationwillbe onsalary,trainingopportunitiesandemploymentconditionsinyourfirstjob:beprepared. Onceagain,youlearntheskillsbyparticipatinginyourteamdiscussionsandthefacetoface negotiationsthattakeplaceonthreeWednesdayafternoonsfromlateApriltillMay.Byreflecting onyourpersonalandteamperformance,youwilllearnwhereyouneedtofocusyourattentionin future.Thisunitisjustthestartingpointofyourcareerofprofessionallearning. Intheexamyouwillbeaskedtowriteanarticleaboutsomethingthathasbeenrelevantduringthe courseforaparticularaudience,takingtheaudienceinterestsintoaccount.Youwillreceivethe questions(butnottheaudiencedetails)aroundthebeginningofMaysothereisplentyoftimeto prepare. WhatcanIdotomaximizemymarksinthisunit? 1) LogintotheMoodlesiteatleast2or3timesaweekandkeeptrackofupcomingeventsand deadlinesinthecalendar. 2) Participateinthepracticalexercisesandthetutorialsateveryopportunityandkeepadiary inwhichyoucanwriteyourownselfevaluationofyourperformanceandhowyouthinkyou needtoimprove.Seekfeedbackfromothersonhowyoucanimprove. 3) Listentothelecturesandtakenotes.Developyourlisteningskillsdotheexerciseslistedat theendofthefirstlecturepresentation. 4) Readasmuchasyoucanfromthebook:Iwillbeprovidingchapterdraftsthroughthe semester.Dothequizzeswhenyoucan:afterthefirstweeksquiz,youwillhaveseveral weekstodothequizzes.Youdonthavetoattempteveryquestion:justmakeagenuine effort.(Thebookisbasedon10yearsofresearchonwhatengineersactuallydo:theUWA researchgroupcurrentlyleadstheworldinresearchingengineeringpractice.) 5) Startingwithnewsarticlesandwebfeaturesonsustainabilityissues(therewillbea selectionattheMoodlesite),readaswidelyasyoucan,particularlywatchingfor sustainabilityissues.CurrentissueslikelytofeatureinthenewsmediaareCoalSeamGas (CSG)inNSWandQueensland,alsoMargaretRiverinWA,Aboriginalrockartprotectionin thePilbara,theGorgonproject,theBroomeGasHubatJamesPricePoint,dredginginthe GladstoneportchannelsinsidetheGreatBarrierReefMarinePark,watersuppliesinWA, geothermalenergyprospectsinSouthAustraliaandmanyothers.

6) Ifnecessary,improveyourwrittenEnglishproficiency.Wewillgiveyouearlyfeedbackon this.SeekhelpifyoucantimprovebyyourowneffortsfromtheStudentSupportoffice neartheGuildbuilding. 7) Writeadraftessayforthemainexamquestionbytheendofsemesterandseekfeedback frommyselforthetutorsbeforetheexam. 8) Dontforgettoparticipateintheonlinepeerassessmentaftereachmainproject.Details willappearattheMoodlesite. 9) Planondoingatleast810hoursperweekprivatestudy,writingandreadingtimeforthe first5weeksofsemester,andthen34hoursperweekfortherestofthesemester.Any workyouneedtodotoimproveyourwrittenEnglishwillbeoverandabovethese estimates. Bytheendofthecourse,Iexpectyouwillhavelearnedalot.Checkthedetailedlearningoutcomes listedagainstEngineersAustraliaprofessionalcompetenciesattheMoodlesite(Week1). Whileyouwillhavelearnedalot,itmaynotbeeasyforyoutoseehowyoumanagedtodothat.I hopethatbywritingthebook,andmakingitavailableforyouforthefirsttimethisyear,thatwillbe justalittleeasierthanithasbeeninthepast. Goodluck Iamconfidentthateveryoneofyouinthiscoursecanbecomeagreatengineer,andIlookforward tohearingaboutyourachievementsinfuture.Ifyoufindthebookhelpful,pleaseletmeknow.If youcanseewaystoimproveit,pleasesendmeyoursuggestions. JamesTrevelyan,March2012