UNESCO Engineering Report 375644eng.pdf

Despite high demand for engineering, a global effort is needed to address specific regional disparities, especially in Africa, according to the second UNESCO Engineering Report, Engineering for Sustainable Development: Delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals, released yesterday to mark the World Engineering Day for Sustainable Development (to be observed tomorrow, 4 March). 

The Report points to currently insufficient engineering capacities to achieve the internationally agreed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and highlights the lack of diversity in the field. It demonstrates how equal opportunity for all is key to ensuring an inclusive and gender balanced profession able to realize its full potential. 

The Report further notes that “the unprecedented situation presented by the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the interconnected nature of societies and how scientific innovations, through the effective implementation of engineering, can increase resilience.” 

The report presents a snapshot of engineering innovations and actions that are contributing to meeting the SDGs, with contributions from authors from every region of the world. It highlights the crucial role of engineering in achieving each of the 17 SDGs, and explains why it is crucial to engage the engineering profession.

The report also demonstrates how engineering innovations and new technologies, especially those using information and communication technologies and data, are transforming our world for the better. Most importantly, it demonstrates how engineering is vital to solving the critical issues of today, including climate change, urbanization and preserving the health of our oceans and forests, for example.

“Engineering itself needs to transform to become more innovative, inclusive, cooperative and responsible,” according to the Report. A new paradigm for engineering is thus urgently needed, one that bridges traditional divisions between disciplines and that is inter- and multidisciplinary in its approach, enabling engineering to address complex issues such as climate change. Furthermore, engineers need to understand and shoulder their social responsibility by contributing to a more sustainable, resilient and equitable world for all people.

The report was prepared in collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Engineering, the International Centre for Engineering Education (ICEE), based at Tsinghua University, the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO) and other international engineering organizations.

• More on the Report:

  https://en.unesco.org/reports/engineering

• World Engineering Day for Sustainable Development:

  https://en.unesco.org/commemorations/engineering

• Media contact: 

  Clare O’Hagan

  c.o-hagan@unesco.org

  +33(0)145681729

 (Source: UNESCO)

The International Sediment Initiative (ISI) and the International Research and Training Center on Erosion and Sedimentation (IRTCES) contribute the report in '3.2.2. Hydrology for the SDGs' together with Division of Water Sciences UNESCO,ICHARM and ICIWaRM.

教科文组织报告显示，加强工程能力对实现可持续发展目标至关重要

第二份联合国教科文组织工程报告《可持续发展工程：实现可持续发展目标》于昨日发布，以庆祝3月4日“促进可持续发展世界工程日”。根据该报告，世界对工程的需求巨大，同时全球需共同努力解决具体的地区差异，特别是在非洲地区。

报告指出当前的工程能力尚不足以实现国际社会共同商定的“可持续发展目标”，并强调该领域缺乏多样性。报告说明保障所有人享有平等机会是确保包容且性别平衡的工程行业，并充分发挥工程潜能的关键。

工程是实现社会可持续发展的关键之一。为了发挥其全部潜力，世界需要更多的工程师和更多的平等。

——奥德蕾·阿祖莱（Audrey Azoulay，联合国教科文组织总干事）

报告进一步指出：“新冠肺炎疫情所呈现的前所未有的形势表明，社会是相互关联的，科学创新通过有效的工程实施，可以提高抗灾能力。”

报告借助来自世界各地作者的贡献，简要介绍了有助于实现可持续发展目标的工程创新和行动。它强调了工程在实现17个可持续发展目标中分别具有的关键作用，并解释了吸引工程专业人士参与其中的重要性。

报告还展示了工程创新和新技术，特别是使用信息通信技术以及数据创新如何使我们的世界变得更好。尤为重要的是，报告展示了工程对于解决当前关键问题的重要性，如气候变化、城市化以及维护海洋和森林的健康等。

报告认为“工程本身需要转型，使之更具创新性、包容性、合作性和责任感”。因此，我们迫切需要一种新的工程范式，以弥合各学科间的传统界限，且在方法上体现跨学科和多学科特性，从而使工程能够解决诸如气候变化之类的复杂问题。此外，工程师需要理解并承担起社会责任，为所有人创造一个更具可持续性、更加坚韧和公平的世界。

中国工程院、清华大学国际工程教育中心、世界工程组织联合会等国际工程组织参与了报告编写。

• 有关报告的更多信息：

  https://en.unesco.org/reports/engineering

• 促进可持续发展世界工程日：

  https://en.unesco.org/commemorations/engineering

• 媒体联系人：

  Clare O’Hagan

  c.o-hagan@unesco.org

  +33(0)145681729