Abstract
Developing countries like Bangladesh are facing multidimensional challenges due to climate change. The traditional engineering sector needs to evolve to contribute to the solution of the emerging problems by incorporating social and technical solutions. Integration of humanitarian and soft engineering and proper project formulation and implementation can go a long way in addressing the challenges. Harmonised and clear policies to this end are of high importance, along with political will and accountability in the public investments. Efficient utilisation of resources are needed through objective and proper prioritisation of projects – free from external influence or interference. Geopolitical cooperation between countries, coordination between the government and non-government sectors, as well as within the departments of the government is crucial for the success of humanitarian and soft engineering in resource-constrained countries.
TopBackground
Climate change has gradually been creating a paradigm shift in the approach of development and engineering as the world becomes more aware of the importance of sustainability and adaptation. The engineering sector at the academic and professional level needs to evolve and tackle the emerging challenges by incorporating sustainable strategies. The gap between technical and social elements needs to be reduced and paying closer attention to the social elements influenced by engineering projects is essential to address both social and engineering concerns.
Humanitarian Engineering provides a unique premise for assuring social justice through engineering works (Leydens & Lucena, 2014). It promotes socio-technical thinking, as the humanitarian engineering projects are inherently interdisciplinary – working at the interface of efficient engineering and sustainable development of the community as a whole (Mazzurco & Daniel, 2020). Humanitarian engineering education and relevant projects have been on the rise in the past few decades to impart social benefits from engineering projects (Smith et al., 2017). Engineering education and ethics play a crucial part in equipping students with sufficient technical and social skills to practice Humanitarian Engineering effectively in the professional sectors (Martin et al., 2021).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Resource-Constrained Countries: Constrained resource is the limitation of any particular resource. Countries with such constraints are termed resource-constrained countries. Even though every country has some form of limitation in resources, in this chapter the developing countries with low and middle income are expressed as Resource-Constrained Countries.
Humanitarian Engineering: Humanitarian engineering is the development and application of engineering techniques to help people. It improves the socio-economic condition of the vulnerable communities in developing countries. The Humanitarian Engineering projects are usually focused on the marginalized and disadvantaged communities. These projects utilise extensive participatory and interdisciplinary engagement among various stakeholders to find simple solutions to basic needs.
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI): NDVI is a remote sensing technique that uses different spectrum bands sensed by satellites to quantify vegetation status in an area. The value of this index varies between +1 to -1. A high positive value indicates a high density of vegetation. A value close to zero indicates built-up or urbanised areas. Negate values generally indicate the presence of water bodies.
Dynamic Cobble Berm Revetment: Dynamic cobble berm revetments are designed to act similar to natural composite beaches. This is a flexible engineering approach for shoreline management that breaks away from the traditional rigid structures. In this approach, the revetment can reshape itself, and retreat as necessary in a self-sustainable way to respond to the sea level rise and other relevant parameters. Dynamic cobble berm revetments are also effective in reducing shoreline erosion, and drainage of accumulated runoffs.
Nature-Based Solutions: This term is used interchangeably with Soft Engineering. Nature-Based Solutions are engineering solutions that are flexible and incorporate natural elements.
Sustainable Development Goal 13: SDG 13 relates to taking urgent actions to combat climate change and its impacts. The targets of SDG 13 are to be achieved by 2030.
Sustainable Development Goal 6: Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) is one of 17 Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations General Assembly. SDG 6 aims to provide access to a safe water supply and sanitation for everyone. Humanitarian and Soft Engineering can play significant roles in attaining SDG 6.
Good Governance: Good governance mainly deals with the proper management of public and economic institutions to protect human rights. Efficient management of public resources falls within good governance.
Soft Engineering: Soft engineering is the use of flexible and nature-based solutions for engineering problems. This is usually applied around shorelines and riverbanks to reduce erosion and flooding. The natural elements are utilised to perform the engineering functions such as absorbing wave energy to reduce erosion or soil loss. The use of natural elements instead of artificial structures paves the way for a sustainable approach to managing the coastline and riverbanks.