Help Address Global Humanitarian Challenges Through "Engineering for Change"

Dear Colleague:

As you may have noticed, IEEE has initiated recently several new efforts toward humanitarian and global development challenges. This undertaking represents recognition on our part of the great potential of our members (engineers and experts in computing and technology) to provide effective assistance and leadership in regions with under-developed infrastructure, and in areas where the infrastructure was damaged by natural or human-made disasters. Many of our IEEE members have told us that they have strong interest in taking part of such activities, and we have reached out to other professional associations to explore opportunities for joint action.

I am pleased to announce that as a result of these efforts, IEEE, ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), and Engineers Without Borders USA (EWB-USA) have launched jointly a new online platform called EngineeringforChange.org (E4C). The E4C platform provides engineers, technologists, computing and networking experts, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and local community advocates with tools to collaboratively address humanitarian and global development challenges. Members of the E4C community - working together - will design, apply and share knowledge to develop technical solutions for emerging challenges in local communities throughout the world.

The E4C Web site was designed to provide users with a convenient and user-friendly way to learn, collaborate, and share data, experience, and insights - leading to enhanced problem solving. As part of this growing community, E4C users will be able to:

• Post challenges and problems in order to gain understanding, perspectives and experience from other E4C community members;
• Work collaboratively and virtually on project teams;
• Make use of a growing, open-source archive of documented solutions and related information submitted by organizations from around the world;
• Keep updated with news and information related to the forefront of engineering and global development;
• Learn from expert practitioners on applying engineering in developing communities;
• Track projects of interest.

We are inviting you today to join the E4C community and share information and expertise on humanitarian projects that match your professional profile.

To learn more and become an active participant in this important initiative, visit the Engineering for Change Web site, the E4C Facebook page or Twitter feed.

Sincerely,
Moshe Kam
IEEE President and CEO

To get in touch with the E4C team and to provide user feedback, please contact their administrator .