The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) has launched a Sustainability Route Map, outlining a three-year plan for the global engineering community to better engage with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and demonstrate the impact of engineering projects.  To tackle each of the route map’s three key areas for action, ICE has set up working groups to deliver progress by 2021.

The Measuring, Monitoring and Reporting working group will evaluate current methods and provide a framework that allows engineers to consistently measure and report on the SDG impact of their infrastructure projects or programmes.

The Systems Approach working group will help engineers to adopt a collaborative, outcome-based system for delivering infrastructure, shifting away from self-contained single projects.

The Global Knowledge Sharing working group will bring UK and international professional engineering bodies together to increase SDG knowledge through education and continuing professional development (CPD).

Global Engineering Congress

The three areas of focus were established following the work of the Global Engineering Congress (GEC), which ICE hosted in October 2018. GEC brought together thousands of engineers from over 80 countries across the world to determine how to make the delivery of the SDGs a reality.

Davide Stronati, Chair of the ICE Sustainability Leadership Team and member of the GEC Legacy Strategic Steering Group, said: “Engineers are ideally placed to answer the many challenges the world faces, and GEC was a unique opportunity for the worldwide engineering community to turn words into action towards the UN sustainable development goals.

“Based on the wealth of knowledge, innovation and ideas that were shared at GEC, ICE has developed a sustainability route map to transform the way engineers engage with the SDGs.

“Over the next three years, our dedicated working groups will increase SDG knowledge throughout the profession and establish a way for infrastructure projects to align effectively and make a measurable impact against the SDGs.”