Engineers Without Borders (Canada)
Encyclopedia
Engineers Without Borders Canada (French
: Ingénieurs sans frontières Canada), abbreviated EWB or ISF, is a non-governmental organization
devoted to international development. Founded in 2000 by George Roter
and Parker Mitchell
, engineering graduates from the University of Waterloo
, it is a registered Canadian
charity focused on finding solutions to extreme poverty, specifically in rural Africa. The group has chapters at universities across Canada, and regional chapters aimed at professionals in several major cities.
EWB Canada has no direct affiliations with similarly named organizations in the rest of the world, although it does collaborate with them from time to time.
In Canada, EWB Canada engages in numerous educational and public outreach activities in Canada including educating high school students about international development issues via the School Outreach program, enhancing curricula at some universities by developing assignments or courses for engineering students, and informing the Canadian public on global development issues. EWB Canada also works in advocacy campaigns aimed convincing the Canadian government to change policies and laws concerning international development issues. This is done through letter writing and meeting with politicians, among other means. Unknown to many, EWB Canada played a large role in the Canadian Live 8 concert
in 2005 and has won numerous awards both nationally and internationally.
EWB Canada is a young, rapidly growing student-driven organization based on university chapters across Canada, with a national office in Toronto to support the university chapters and to co-ordinate and train overseas volunteers. As of January 2009 there are 26 university chapters, 7 professional chapters and more than 35,000 members nationwide. Paid staff is kept to a minimum in the organization, in order to run the organization as efficiently as possible; all positions outside the national office are volunteer. The members are primarily engineering students, although a number of non-engineering students are active members and have volunteered overseas.
There is an annual EWB Canada national conference every year in late January which is currently the largest international development conference in Canada. Its location varies from year to year depending on the chapter hosting it.
Chapters are able to send overseas volunteers for four month work terms through the Junior Fellowship in International Development Program. Short term volunteers, or Junior Fellows, are student members returning to their chapter following their time overseas. Four months is considered a short term placement and the greatest impact is the overseas volunteers' contributions upon their return to their chapter in Canada - they return with a wide range of experiences and lessons that can be passed on to other members and the public at large.
Long-term overseas volunteers go on placements lasting one to three years. These are often university graduates that were involved with an EWB Canada university chapter. Knowledge and experience in international development, leadership skills and open-mindedness are considered much more important than just technical skills. The goal of these placements is not to alleviate poverty alone, but also to build capacity among the local non-governmental organization partners and community at large. For this reason all overseas projects are done in collaboration with a local NGO partner who is encouraged to take ownership of various projects and ultimately have no need EWB Canada's help and input.
campaign.
(which uses EWB Canada's lightbulb logo), and also maintains close relationships with EWB Australia
, ISF Spain, ISF Italy, and Engineers for a Sustainable World
in the U.S.
Like the other aforementioned groups, EWB Canada is not part of the EWB International network, which was started by EWB-USA
and includes a rival group in the province of Quebec
, Ingénieurs sans frontières Québec. The Canadian organization says that while it does attend some of EWB-I's meetings and occasionally collaborates with its member groups, active participation in that network would be difficult since the EWB-I groups do not share a "common strategy and culture" with each other, let alone with EWB Canada.
In particular, the Canadian group is a strong critic of EWB-USA's focus on short-term development projects run by each chapter, arguing that "locally driven, locally appropriate change is the only sustainable change that will reduce people’s vulnerabilities and thus, reduce the need for short term, humanitarian type projects."
has served as sole chief executive officer
of the organization since January 1, 2011. Previously, Roter was co-CEO along with fellow co-founder Parker Mitchell
, who remains a member of EWB's board of directors.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
: Ingénieurs sans frontières Canada), abbreviated EWB or ISF, is a non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
devoted to international development. Founded in 2000 by George Roter
George Roter
George Roter is the co-founder and CEO of Engineers Without Borders . He and Parker Mitchell founded the Canadian organization in 2000....
and Parker Mitchell
Parker Mitchell
Parker Mitchell is the co-founder and former co-CEO of Engineers Without Borders . He and George Roter founded the Canadian organization in 2000.Mitchell has a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a B.A...
, engineering graduates from the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
, it is a registered Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
charity focused on finding solutions to extreme poverty, specifically in rural Africa. The group has chapters at universities across Canada, and regional chapters aimed at professionals in several major cities.
EWB Canada has no direct affiliations with similarly named organizations in the rest of the world, although it does collaborate with them from time to time.
Mission
Throughout much of EWB's early history, its mission was "to promote human development through access to technology." In January 2009, the organization abandoned the mission statement by burning a copy of it on stage at its national conference. This was done in order to allow EWB to continue doing international development in the best way possible, without being tied down to a specific focus on technology. Since then, EWB has replaced its mission statement with four outcome areas: Supporting rural African capacity, Advocating for improved Canadian policies toward Africa, Engaging Canadians to contribute and connect to Africa, and Helping the engineering profession serve global society.In Canada
Live 8
Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and in South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 Conference and summit held at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland from 6–8 July 2005; they also coincided with the 20th anniversary of Live Aid...
in 2005 and has won numerous awards both nationally and internationally.
EWB Canada is a young, rapidly growing student-driven organization based on university chapters across Canada, with a national office in Toronto to support the university chapters and to co-ordinate and train overseas volunteers. As of January 2009 there are 26 university chapters, 7 professional chapters and more than 35,000 members nationwide. Paid staff is kept to a minimum in the organization, in order to run the organization as efficiently as possible; all positions outside the national office are volunteer. The members are primarily engineering students, although a number of non-engineering students are active members and have volunteered overseas.
There is an annual EWB Canada national conference every year in late January which is currently the largest international development conference in Canada. Its location varies from year to year depending on the chapter hosting it.
Overseas
EWB works overseas (primarily in sub-Saharan Africa) with local NGOs and, occasionally, government departments (for example, the Ghanaian Ministry of Food and Agriculture) to help increase access to technology at the local level. The focus is on access to technology largely through local capacity-building rather than on technologies themselves.Chapters are able to send overseas volunteers for four month work terms through the Junior Fellowship in International Development Program. Short term volunteers, or Junior Fellows, are student members returning to their chapter following their time overseas. Four months is considered a short term placement and the greatest impact is the overseas volunteers' contributions upon their return to their chapter in Canada - they return with a wide range of experiences and lessons that can be passed on to other members and the public at large.
Long-term overseas volunteers go on placements lasting one to three years. These are often university graduates that were involved with an EWB Canada university chapter. Knowledge and experience in international development, leadership skills and open-mindedness are considered much more important than just technical skills. The goal of these placements is not to alleviate poverty alone, but also to build capacity among the local non-governmental organization partners and community at large. For this reason all overseas projects are done in collaboration with a local NGO partner who is encouraged to take ownership of various projects and ultimately have no need EWB Canada's help and input.
Partnerships
As discussed above, EWB Canada works with local NGOs and government departments in order to carry out its overseas work. It also partners with other NGOs from time to time on projects of mutual interest, including the Canadian iteration of the Make Poverty HistoryMake Poverty History
Make Poverty History is the name of a campaign that exists in a number of countries, including Australia, Canada, Denmark , Finland, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Romania, the United Arab Emirates, Great Britain and Ireland...
campaign.
Relationships with other EWB organizations
EWB Canada is legally and structurally separate from all other "Engineers Without Borders" organizations, although it assisted in the launch of EWB UKEngineers Without Borders (UK)
Engineers Without Borders UK is a UK-based registered charity and NGO, operated primarily by UK-based university students. Its mission is to Facilitate Human Development through Engineering....
(which uses EWB Canada's lightbulb logo), and also maintains close relationships with EWB Australia
Engineers Without Borders (Australia)
Engineers Without Borders Australia is a non-profit organisation that works within Australia and abroad to improve the quality of life of disadvantaged communities through education and the implementation of sustainable engineering projects...
, ISF Spain, ISF Italy, and Engineers for a Sustainable World
Engineers for a Sustainable World
Engineers for a Sustainable World is a national not-for-profit based in Merced, California. ESW is an umbrella organization with chapters established at twenty-seven colleges and universities located primarily in the United States. ESW chapters work on technical engineering projects that have a...
in the U.S.
Like the other aforementioned groups, EWB Canada is not part of the EWB International network, which was started by EWB-USA
Engineers Without Borders (USA)
Engineers Without Borders – USA is a non-profit humanitarian organization established to partner with developing communities worldwide in order to improve their quality of life...
and includes a rival group in the province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Ingénieurs sans frontières Québec. The Canadian organization says that while it does attend some of EWB-I's meetings and occasionally collaborates with its member groups, active participation in that network would be difficult since the EWB-I groups do not share a "common strategy and culture" with each other, let alone with EWB Canada.
In particular, the Canadian group is a strong critic of EWB-USA's focus on short-term development projects run by each chapter, arguing that "locally driven, locally appropriate change is the only sustainable change that will reduce people’s vulnerabilities and thus, reduce the need for short term, humanitarian type projects."
Governance
George RoterGeorge Roter
George Roter is the co-founder and CEO of Engineers Without Borders . He and Parker Mitchell founded the Canadian organization in 2000....
has served as sole chief executive officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of the organization since January 1, 2011. Previously, Roter was co-CEO along with fellow co-founder Parker Mitchell
Parker Mitchell
Parker Mitchell is the co-founder and former co-CEO of Engineers Without Borders . He and George Roter founded the Canadian organization in 2000.Mitchell has a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a B.A...
, who remains a member of EWB's board of directors.
Board of directors
EWB's board consists of the following directors, in a mixture of appointed and elected positions.- Don Thurston (Chair) - President, Selkirk Portfolio Management
- Mary Lynne Forestell (Treasurer) - Senior Director of IT Finance, Bell CanadaBell CanadaBell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...
- Tristan Allan - engineering student, University of AlbertaUniversity of AlbertaThe University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
(elected director) - Courtney Edwards - engineering graduate student, Carleton UniversityCarleton UniversityCarleton University is a comprehensive university located in the capital of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The enabling legislation is The Carleton University Act, 1952, S.O. 1952. Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton now offers over 65 programs in a diverse range of disciplines. Carleton has...
(elected director) - Louis Dorval - Director of Special Projects, Meltwater GroupMeltwater GroupMeltwater Group is a Software as a Service company founded in Oslo, Norway in 2001 based on research originally funded by the Norwegian Computing Center. The founder and CEO, Jørn Lyseggen, has also founded a number of other startups...
- Jacques Gérin - former chair, International Institute for Sustainable Development
- Parker MitchellParker MitchellParker Mitchell is the co-founder and former co-CEO of Engineers Without Borders . He and George Roter founded the Canadian organization in 2000.Mitchell has a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a B.A...
- co-founder, EWB Canada - Grégoire Poirier Richer - account manager, General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
(elected director) - George RoterGeorge RoterGeorge Roter is the co-founder and CEO of Engineers Without Borders . He and Parker Mitchell founded the Canadian organization in 2000....
- CEO, EWB Canada - Brian Schofield - retired director, McKinsey & CompanyMcKinsey & CompanyMcKinsey & Company, Inc. is a global management consulting firm that focuses on solving issues of concern to senior management. McKinsey serves as an adviser to many businesses, governments, and institutions...
- Shayne Smith - CEO, Wardrop Engineering Inc.
Advisory board
In addition to its board of directors, EWB Canada has an advisory board consisting of:- Zafer Achi - Director, McKinsey & Company
- J. Edward Brockhouse - Founder, Brockhouse and Cooper
- Robert ChambersRobert Chambers (development scholar)- His approach:Since the 1980s, he has been one of the leading advocates for putting the poor, destitute and marginalised at the centre of the processes of development policy. In particular he argues they should be taken into account when the development problem is identified, policy formulated and...
- Research Associate, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex - Dato' Ir. Lee Yee Cheong - Past President, World Federation of Engineering Organisations
- Rupert Duchesne - President and CEO, AeroplanAeroplanAeroplan is a Montreal, Quebec, Canada based coalition loyalty program owned by Aimia , a global leader in loyalty management. The Aeroplan Program was created in July 1984 by Air Canada as an incentive program for its frequent flyer customers...
- Sakiko Fukuda-ParrSakiko Fukuda-ParrSakiko Fukuda-Parr is a development economist who has gained recognition for her work with the United Nations Development Programme and for her writing in publications including the Journal of Human Development, which she founded....
- Past Director, Human Development Report, United Nations Development ProgrammeUnited Nations Development ProgrammeThe United Nations Development Programme is the United Nations' global development network. It advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP operates in 177 countries, working with nations on their own solutions to... - David JohnstonDavid Lloyd JohnstonDavid Lloyd Johnston is a Canadian academic, author and statesman who is the current Governor General of Canada, the 28th since Canadian Confederation....
- Governor-General of Canada, former President of University of WaterlooUniversity of WaterlooThe University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff... - Donald JohnstonDon JohnstonThe Honourable Donald James Johnston, PC, OC, QC is a former Canadian politician, lawyer, and was Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development from 1996 to 2006.-Early life:...
- Secretary General, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and DevelopmentOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and DevelopmentThe Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is an international economic organisation of 34 countries founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade... - Vernon Lobo - Managing Director, Mosaic Venture Partners
- Maureen O’Neil - President, Canadian Health Services Research Foundation
- James OrbinskiJames OrbinskiJames Jude Orbinski, OC, OOnt, MSC is a Canadian physician, writer, and humanitarian activist. He is an associate professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto and a Fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs. In January 2011, he also assumed the Chair of Global Health at the Dalla Lana...
- Past President, Médecins Sans FrontièresMédecins Sans Frontières' , or Doctors Without Borders, is a secular humanitarian-aid non-governmental organization best known for its projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing endemic diseases. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland... - Patrick PichettePatrick PichettePatrick Pichette is Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Google Inc..He holds a Bachelor in Business Administration from the business school École des sciences de la Gestion of Université du Québec à Montréal and an MA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of...
- CFO, GoogleGoogleGoogle Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program... - Betty Plewes - Past CEO, Canadian Council for International Co-operation
- John Ralston SaulJohn Ralston SaulJohn Ralston Saul, CC is a Canadian author, essayist, and President of International PEN.As an essayist, Saul is particularly known for his commentaries on the nature of individualism, citizenship and the public good; the failures of manager-, or more precisely technocrat-, led societies; the...
- essayist and novelist - Scott Rutherford - management consultant, previously of McKinsey & Company
- Ian Smillie - international development consultant and author
- Frances StewartFrances StewartFrances Julia Stewart is Professor of Development Economics and Director of the Centre for Research on Inequality, Human Security and Ethnicity , University of Oxford. A pre-eminent development economist, she was named one of fifty outstanding technological leaders for 2003 by Scientific American...
- Director, Development Studies, University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...