UTEP | College of Engineering

UTEP and Local Leaders to Discuss Sustainability

Photo courtesy of UTEP

In the desert Southwest where the environment is fragile, water is scarce and the population is growing, it is important to consider how decisions today will affect the quality of life for current and future generations. The University of Texas at El Paso is addressing such concerns.

UTEP’s Center for Science, Technology, Ethics and Policy (CSTEP) will sponsor its second annual workshop on ethics for professional engineers and other interested participants. The media is invited to attend the workshop on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 6 and 7 in the El Paso Natural Gas Conference Center on Wiggins Road. The program is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Registration for this event is now closed to the public.

Designing buildings and other structures in a way that balances environmental, social and economic concerns is often called sustainable development. Engineers have a major role to play in that decision-making process.

Workshop talks and panel discussions will address questions such as: Do engineers have an obligation to make sustainable structures and products? What if making a particular project sustainable for El Paso or Las Cruces makes life less sustainable in other parts of Texas? Over what time scale should projects be sustainable? And should the value of a sustainable alternative be measured by how much money it saves in the long run, or should social values or other issues be considered?

“This issue is vitally important for the general public,” said Jules Simon, director of the center and chair of UTEP’s Philosophy Department. “This workshop is part of the new project line being developed by CSTEP that focuses on developing a comprehensive database of sustainability developments in the tri-city, tri-state region and that emphasizes principles drawn from other sustainability initiatives, such as Smart Growth, New Urbanism, reduction of urban sprawl, support of public transit alternatives, walkable and multi-use neighborhoods, energy efficiency, promotion of interconnections, and improved wildlife corridors and park systems.”

The two-day workshop will start with a talk on Friday by El Paso Sustainability Manager Marty Howell, who will describe the city’s sustainability program. Tom Davis, director of the UTEP Center for Inland Desalination Systems, will speak about the Fort Bliss project that is a model for other inland desalination systems around the world.

After lunch, UTEP Professor Charles Turner will discuss Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design, or LEED. Barry Benedict, UTEP Professor and Director of the Environmental Science and Engineering Department, will wrap up the afternoon with a talk titled, “Sustainability is More Than Environmentalism.”

On Saturday, Simon will speak about the ethical principles of sustainability. The workshop will conclude with a panel titled “Beyond the Law: How Can Designing for Sustainability Become as Natural as Designing for Stability.” City Councilwoman Ann Morgan Lily, Vice Chairman of the Texas Board of Professional Engineers Jose Cardenas and UTEP Dean of Engineering Richard Schoephoerster will join Benedict, Howell and Simon on the panel.

CSTEP was formed two years ago by two engineering professors and a philosophy professor who share a common interest in ethics. Their goal was to bring together professionals and students to talk about ethics in the context of current technological issues.