Engineers Without Borders UK launches Reshaping Engineering Challenge 2023

DELIVERED in collaboration with AzuKo, the month-long virtual design challenge is open to students and professionals working in technical and non-technical roles, who will collaborate to tackle a real-world brief.

Participants will need to commit to approximately 4-5 hours per week from 23 January to 3 March (around 20 hours in total). This time will include both live and asynchronous sessions led by Engineers Without Borders UK and collaborators. Following registration, participants will be assigned teams consisting of either students or professionals. Each team will be assigned a professional mentor with expertise in globally responsible engineering approaches, with final designs assessed by a panel of expert judges who are already leading change in the sector.

"This challenge is an incredible opportunity for participants to deepen their understanding of globally responsible engineering and their ability to solve real-world problems with a collaborative approach to design," said John Krause, CEO of Engineers Without Borders UK. "By opening applications to those with and without technical training, we want to highlight the importance of working across sectors to foster a broader understanding of the impacts of engineering to make a safer future for everyone.

"The inaugural challenge last year was a great success - we even had some previous designs being taken forward by participating companies - and we’re looking forward to seeing how our new cohort will respond to this new brief with empathetic and sustainable solutions," he added. 

Reshaping Engineering 2022 winner, Bethany, characterised the Engineers Without Borders UK Reshaping Engineering challenge as "hands down one of the best professional engineering activities I've done in my career so far".

Meanwhile, Reshaping Engineering 2022 winner, Erika, affirmed "I learned a lot about bringing together a big picture idea". "Often clients come to us and they say I have this very specific thing that’s broken and needs fixing […] It was nice to step outside of that design process and think about holistic solutions and also think about how to craft a solution for a problem that’s not so specific, that was a learning exercise for me," she explained. 

Participants who are in employment are encouraged to consider how this opportunity could contribute to Chartership or CPD Accreditation, and to explore with their employer how the challenge could be embedded in their day-to-day work.

The results will be announced during the final event on 11 March.

Hear more from last year’s winning team.