Green is the symbolic color of environmentalism, representing youth, nature, and growth. As a concept, environmentalism is changing. It is no longer narrowly defined. Today, concerns about climate change, depletion of natural resources, accumulating waste, and social injustice have widened the “green” agenda to encompass the multicolored and multidimensional challenge of sustainable development.
Interestingly, there are still many people who remain skeptical about the topic of sustainable development, perhaps because the results of our actions have not truly reached fruition.
Paving the way forward
When cigarettes were first introduced in the 1800s, people were completely unaware of their danger. Since that time, education and hard evidence have highlighted the harmful effects of smoking, which has helped us to make informed decisions. In a similar way, sustainable living in today’s society remains an ethical choice. For future generations, however, it will be an imperative and so requires immediate action.
And where better to start than with engineers — motivated and creative professionals — particularly those in the early stages of their careers?
The idea of influencing engineers who will be making important decisions tomorrow is the concept behind “Engineers of the 21st Century,” a partnership program set up by Forum for the Future, a leading sustainable development charity. Established in 1999, Engineers of the 21st Century has the aim of accelerating change in the engineering profession “to enable it to respond fully and positively to the challenge of sustainable development.”
The program began with an inquiry carried out by a group of young engineers tasked with investigating the level of endorsement the concept of sustainability had within the engineering profession. The results indicated four key areas where consistent effort will be needed for engineers and related professionals to make a significant contribution to sustainable development. These areas, known as the “Change Challenges for the Future” will lay the groundwork for building up acceptance for sustainable development.
The program
Now in its third phase, the program continues to capitalize on the ambition and enthusiasm of young engineers from a range of disciplines and industries.
Leading the partnership is the Royal Academy of Engineering, with participating organizations, including Arup, Balfour Beatty, Anglian Water, Environment Agency, Royal Haskoning, Lloyd’s Register, and ConocoPhillips, seconding their employees to join a network of young engineers working on the Change Challenge projects.
The engineers work in groups on projects that at present vary from incorporating sustainable development into engineering courses at universities to reducing the weight of rolling stock in trains, challenging the reasons for the lack of sustainable office buildings, and investigating sustainable procurement in the construction and oil and gas industries.
The complex issue of sustainable procurement has been much debated. On a domestic level, we are continually bombarded with green or eco-labels, encouraging us to make more ethical choices about the food we
eat, the clothes we wear, and the cars we drive.
But is this the case in the oil and
gas industry? Do we know where products are sourced and manufactured? How did the product arrive at its final destination? And what was its carbon footprint? Can we be sure that the workforce that produced the product received fair labor practices?
These are some of the questions currently being explored by one of the groups in the program. The fact is that the public commitment made by large operator organizations toward sustainable development implies that these issues are properly dealt with throughout the life cycle of a product. The engineers in this group are asking,
“Is this assumption justified?”
Involvement in this program offers an excellent opportunity for young professionals to work on exciting projects, meet people from different disciplines, and learn from various industries.
The underlying message of Engineers of the 21st Century is simple. It is time to change attitudes. It is time to change the focus of education and to build sustainability skills and literacy into engineering education and professional practices.
For the new generation of engineers, perhaps more aptly named “greengineers,” sustainable development is becoming a fundamental part of the oil and gas industry and beyond. The greengineers of today are working to make a significant contribution toward a greener, more sustainable future.

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