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Leading Green Design in Civil Engineering

Civil engineers have been slow to incorporate sustainable principles into projects, despite recognizing environmental limits and their ethical duty to consider sustainability. To better lead green initiatives, civil engineers need more interdisciplinary experience, inductive reasoning skills, and abilities to quantify sustainability. Education must introduce sustainability concepts and modify courses accordingly. Federal and local governments can significantly impact sustainability through policies requiring green building standards in public projects.

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Nhan Do
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21 views9 pages

Leading Green Design in Civil Engineering

Civil engineers have been slow to incorporate sustainable principles into projects, despite recognizing environmental limits and their ethical duty to consider sustainability. To better lead green initiatives, civil engineers need more interdisciplinary experience, inductive reasoning skills, and abilities to quantify sustainability. Education must introduce sustainability concepts and modify courses accordingly. Federal and local governments can significantly impact sustainability through policies requiring green building standards in public projects.

Uploaded by

Nhan Do
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Sustainable Development and Green Design

Who is Leading the Green Initiative?


JOURNAL OF PROFESSIONAL ISSUES IN
E N G I N E E R I N G E D U C AT I O N A N D P R A C T I C E
FORUM
OCTOBER 2007
M E L I S S A B I L E C , R O B E RT R I E S , H . S C O T T
M AT T H E W S

1. Introduction
In the twentieth century, there was a realization of the

limits to the conventional approach to growth.


Most civil engineers do not incorporate sustainable
principles into projects.
Design professionals believe they are not as involved in
sustainable design as they should be (NSPE 2002).

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2. Sustainability Efforts in Civil Engineering


ASCE and the Code of Ethics include engineers

existing skills sets.


Engineers shall hold paramount the safety, health and
welfare of the public and shall strive to comply with the
principles of sustainable development in the
performance of their professional duties.
Implementing sustainability into projects requires
learning and applying new skills.
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Civil Engineers Skills Set

Three areas contribute to the low level of effort:


1. Interdisciplinary experiences, ability to work well with others
2. reasoning techniques, and
3. quantification applications.
Reasoning Techniques and Quantification of Sustainability
For 100 years, civil engineers mainly follow deductive reasoning.
() (logic: a problem, assumptions, solution)
Inductive approach() depends on creative insight into
observed phenomena, maybe more applicable to creating new
solutions or analysis methods related to sustainable design.
LEED: evolving process
First understand and address environmental issues in building design
(inductive), then attempt to quantify the results of the achievement
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(deductive).

Education
Introduction of green design concepts into civil

engineering programs is necessary, to incorporate specific


courses, supplement and modify traditional courses with
sustainable practices.
Courses can be both quantitative and qualitative in nature.
Major leading contractors in the country have committed
to green design and construction.

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Importance of Leaders
Most people would probably not be able to name civil

engineers.
Civil engineers are not associated with these
achievements?
Qualities required for civil engineers to emerge as
leaders in the latest challenge of sustainability.

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3. Federal and Local Design and Policy Issues


Federal government has the greatest potential impact on

sustainability.
The United States General Services Administration (GSA)
considers itself the landlord for the federal government.
In fiscal year 2003, all new GSA buildings must meet the
criteria for LEED certified status.
The federal government has a top-down approach to
implementing green design.

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Implementation of green policy


For commercial buildings, Portland offers a sustainable

building tax credit, which is based on the level of LEED


certification obtained.
In 2001, the City of Portland required all city facilities to
be LEED-certified.
Develop its own localized version of LEED.

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4. Conclusion
Several key changes need to occur with civil engineers

changes to both the entire profession and to individual


practicing engineers.
Civil engineering curriculum should incorporate
sustainability and green design courses
Civil engineering programs should promote problem
solving by using both inductive and deductive approaches.
Creating sustainable solutions offers challenges to the
profession.
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