Engineering, poverty, and the earth

Abstract

In the present work, the growing awareness in engineering of the profession's responsibility towards the environment and the poor is considered. The following approach is taken: a brief overview of the issues of poverty particularly in the U.S. and the deterioration of the natural world with a focus on the Arctic is provided. Case studies involving New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the status of polar bears in a time of shrinking Arctic ice cover are detailed. Recent developments in engineering related to the issues of poverty and the environment are discussed. A new paradigm for engineering based on the works of Leonardo Boff and Thomas Berry, one that places an important emphasis upon a community, is explored. Copyright © 2007 by Morgan & Claypool.