Interdisciplinary environmental engineering program

• Autor(es): Brito, Claudio da Rocha ; Ciampi, Melany M. ; Vasconcelos, Rosa ; Amaral, Luís ; Barros, Victor Freitas de Azeredo
• Data: 2013
• Identificador Persistente: http://hdl.handle.net/1822/25599
• Origem: RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho
• Assunto(s): Global education perspective; PhD program; Technical skills; Regional environmental issues; Growing economies
• Tipo de Documento: Documento de conferência
• Idioma: Inglês

Descrição

Engineers have diligently built and transformed the environment to make men’s life better. The number of prominent professionals who have been referenced by their accomplishments is uncountable. Based on this, it is possible to say that the education of engineers is fundamental to keep the level of development of humanity in order to achieve a social development level similar to technological development. However the present challenges of engineering education institutions are not limited to the education of a professional for an international work market, but also to defeat the crises of education in which they are inserted. It is accurate to state that engineers are responsible for the development of science and technology once they design tools, systems and instruments that make the acquisition of knowledge in a vast amount of fields possible. Engineering is responsible for the deep transformation of human relations in the first decade of 21st century, also changing education as well as business paradigms. A new era in working environment has started, which characteristics are peculiar due to new communications, mobility and globalization. These aspects lead to the fact that now it is also important to provide engineers with tools that enable them to act in a working environment that demands a very flexible and innovative mind in order for them to be fully inserted and to keep up with the work market [1]. The expanding global population has brought with it a growing concern about the environment and the impact of technological development on it. The goal of this work is to show the engineering program developed with the objective to train engineers to enter and remain in the future labor market. The choice of a PhD program is due to the investments that are being done in the region and the future possibilities for civil engineers. It is a region where petrol has been found in a great amount and also where the enlargement of the seaport for 2020 is being planned, two big endeavors that require many constructions. The present program is an interdisciplinary environmental engineering program that intends to offer students an exciting opportunity to focus their technical capabilities on evolving science that affects human quality of life in an international scale and can simultaneously help preserve and restore areas in which they work. Emerging issues challenge environmental engineers in public health, conservation and restoration of natural systems, water and wastewater treatment, pollution prevention, and more. Students in this program acquire the professional skills to manage these complex issues and help their planet. This is also the opportunity for young people who are seeking for a career and a job.