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Decolonizing relationships: moving from an empowerment to agency mindset in international engineering interventions
Lawson-Bulten, Emily J. Mingee, Jess LaSalle, Connor Witmer, Ann-Perry
Lawson-Bulten, Emily J.
Mingee, Jess
LaSalle, Connor
Witmer, Ann-Perry
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Date
2025
Educational Level
Curriculum Area
Geographical Setting
United States of America
Abstract
Given the complexity of global poverty and climate change, it reasons that engineering education has focused on "Engineers as Changemakers", seeking to inspire engineers to tackle the world's wicked problems. However, in practice, the desire for engineers to see themselves as changemakers eclipses the autonomy of local communities, especially in international interventions. By focusing on empowerment, engineers unintentionally reinforce themselves as the power and knowledge holders. Inspired from works by Robert Chambers and Paulo Freire, we propose a new mindset for engineering education that shifts the focus from engineers as changemakers to engineers as facilitators and consultants. In this framework, the local community is viewed as the changemaker, affirming them as the primary acting agent of their lives. We illustrate the impact of this mindset shift in practice through the analysis of two technological case studies, both of which follow non-governmental organizations (NGOs) seeking to make long-lasting change with community members. Although the explicitly stated intentions of both groups are very similar, the NGO in one of the cases seeks to affirm the agency of community partners, referring to them as experts and drivers of the project. Meanwhile, the NGO in the other case utilizes language of empowerment, referring to themselves as the educators and providers of sustainable practices and technology. The impact of these mindsets is illustrated through qualitative data regarding stakeholder relationships and the community's response to each project. Through these case studies, we see that liberative and collaborative technical interventions require a reimagining of the relationship between the engineer and community. As engineering educators, we are responsible for challenging the traditional, and arguably colonial, mindset with our students for true, long-lasting change to be made.
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Keywords (free text)
case-based learning, community partnerships, stakeholder engagement, engineering education, engineering for sustainable development, education for sustainabilty, sustainability in engineering