You have noticed that engineering journals, business papers and the media are referring a lot to sustainable development. Your team has determined to find out why it is such a significant issue. Each team is to take one of the sustainable development aspects of the Engineers without Borders (EWB) 2013 challenge projects (EWB 2013). The EWB Challenge is an Australasian design program for first-year university students, which provides students with the opportunity to learn about design, sustainable development, teamwork and communication, while contributing towards real international development projects (Dowling et al. 2013). Last year, students worked on projects to make a real contribution towards the sustainable development of the Anh Minh district within the Kien Giang province on the Mekong Delta in Vietnam.
In 2013, Plan Timor Leste and EWB collaboratively identified a range of areas for growth within the district of Lautém in Timor Leste. They are now inviting students to use their problem solving and design skills to develop innovative and appropriate project solutions to make a real contribution towards the sustainable development of the town of Codo in Timor Leste. You will be required to work in teams of 4 to 5 on projects that address project ideas identified by the EWB and Plan Timor Leste. More information could be located on http://www.ewb.org.au/explore/initiatives/ewbchallenge/ptl (EWB 2013).
Seven design areas have been identified by EWB and Plan Timor Leste. Several project ideas are being suggested for each design area. Your team is required to identify a design area and choose one of the suggested projects with a sustainability focus and work towards designing a solution to that problem. Please refer to the EWB website for more detailed information about each project, the design requirements as well as other supporting resources. Your design proposal satisfying all the EWB design considerations and reporting requirements should be documented in a team report and submitted by Friday, Week 12.