Educative experiences through cooperation for development activities

Ending nineties, UPC decided to push a Development Education program embedded in its usual education activities, jointly with campus-based co-operation for development groups. The proposal was initially included in a four-year university strategic plan, and it has been politically prioritized since then. The origin and main characteristics of the program 2000-2005 are presented here (see [1] and references therein for more details).Postprint (published version

Methodology for the reporting of small scale rural water and sanitation programmes' outputs

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UPC’s institutional transformation towards sustainability

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Promoting development education in Spanish engineering studies, a comprehensive strategy from the non governmental fiels based on a collabroative approach with the univesity

The main goal of this paper is to present the conce pt of ‘Technology for Human Development’ (THD) as a conceptual and particular f ramework for promoting ‘Development Education’ (DE) programmes in engineer ing curricula. The proposal is based on the accumulated experience of the Spanish federation of Engineering Without Borders (ISF-Spain) since the mid-nineties, when th e first specific proposals were consolidated, as well as the on-going work promoted by the network. Remarkably, ‘THD’ constitute a general framework not only for e ducational purposes but also for engineering practice in the international developme nt and the co-operation fields. For ISF-Spain, ‘THD’ constitutes a strategic goal for o verseas development programmes which necessarily include lobbying campaigns, engin eering educational proposals, awareness-raising and research activities. As an ex ample, the ‘DE’ state-level programme for 2005-06 is presented.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Partenariado ONGD. Universidad para el impulso de la Educación para el Desarrollo. El caso ISF-UPC 2000-2005

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Enhancing the water point mapping: a WASH approach

Strategic planning and appropriate development and management of water and sanitation services can be strongly supported by accurate and accessible data. If adequately exploited, these data might assist water managers with performance monitoring, benchmarking comparisons, policy progress evaluation, resources allocation, and decision making. A variety of tools and techniques are in place to collect such information. However, some methodological weaknesses arise when developing an instrument for routine data collection, particularly at local level: (i) comparability problems due to heterogeneity of data and sector-re lated indicators, (ii) in adequate combination of different information sources, and (iii) statistical validity of collected data. The purpose of this study is to adopt an integrated water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) approach for data collection at community level in rural low income settings, as an attempt to overcome previous shortcomings. The survey design takes the Water Point Mapping (WPM) as a starting point to record all available water sources at a particular location, and this information is then linked to data provided from a household-based survey. In order to demonstrate the applicability of the method, a case study is presented at Tiraque Valley (Cochabamba, Bolivia).Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Professors responding to the new challenges on engineering profession: bringing new values into the classroom

Professors responding to the new challenges on engineering profession: bringing new values into the classroom Josep Lobera* 1 , Agustí Pérez-Foguet 2 , Cristina Escrigas 1 1 Global University Network for Innovation (GUNI) Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) Edifici TG (S1), C/ Jordi Girona, 31, 08034 Barcelona – Spain e-mail: [email protected] du 2 E.T.S de Ingenieros de Caminos, Canales y Puertos de Barcelona Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya Módulo C2, Campus Nord, c/ Jordi Girona 1-3, 08034 Barcelona – Spain ABSTRACT Education in values is seen as a continuous process that begins at the childhood. It is unquestionably influenced by the family and the society. University should consolidate the formation of the political, ethical and moral values acquired in the former educational levels, as well as to form and to develop the professional values (Lourdes Zumalacárregui and Alonso, 2002). Formation of values is not an addition al content in the curriculum, but a reality that should be considered in the whole work system and activi ties at the university through all the dimensions of the educational process. In the engineer education, values are and always have been present. Yet these values not always have been adapted to the reality of the society in which engineers develop their profes sional careers and lives. The last decade has seen a remarkable change in the economic and social landscape of society. Many societal trends and needs call fo r engineers to broaden t heir outlooks, have more flexible career options, and work closely and e ffectively with persons of quite different backgrounds. Yet the education and general orientation of engineers have been directed inward toward the profession, rather than outward toward the rest of society and the world (King, 2006), and in some classrooms there are transmitted va lues that were for the first or the second industrial revolution. The convergence of the Spanish te rtiary education system into the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) represents an opportunity to introdu ce new educational methodologies that could facilitate the development of the knowledge, atti tudes and procedures that are needed to the new professional and personal contexts. Some teachers at the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC) are developing a project of educational innovation in which they aim to inco rporate the following issues transversally into the technical subjects that they give nowadays: values and ethics in engineering, participative learning, transdisciplinarity, multiculturalism and diversity, and human sustainable development. This paper draws on this experience and it treats the opportunities and difficulties which teachers face bringing new values into the classroomPeer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Educación para el desarrollo sostenible entre educación para el desarrollo y educación ambiental: apuntes para un debate

La ponencia se coloca en el área de “Innovación de la docencia”, intentando de definir interrelaciones entre Educación para el Desarrollo (EpD), Educación Ambiental (EA) y para el Desarrollo Sostenible (EpDS). El rol de esta ultima está tomando una posición siempre central en los actuales procesos de cambio de los cursos de grado y postgrado hacia el cumplimento de las directrices del Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES.Peer Reviewe

Educación para el desarrollo y para la sostenibilidad. Acercando propuestas en el marco del EEES

L a s i nt e rre l a c i one s e nt re l a E duc a c i ón pa ra e l D e s a rrol l o, l a E duc a c i ón pa ra l a S os t e ni bi l i da d y pa ra e l D e s a rrol l o S os t e ni bl e ha n c ons t i t ui do un punt o c l a ve pa ra l a de fi ni c i ón de l os c urs os de pos t gra do de l a U ni ve rs i da d P ol i t e c ni c a de Ca t a l uña (U P C) a da pt a dos a l nue vo E s pa c i o E urope o de E duc a c i ón S upe ri or. L os e nfoque s m á s c e rc a nos a l a c oope ra c i ón pa ra e l de s a rrol l o y l os m á s propi os de l a s os t e ni bi l i da d c ont ri buye n de m a ne ra c om pl e m e nt a ri a y de c i s i va e n l a form a c i ón de l os profe s i ona l e s l l a m a dos a t ra ba j a r e n t a re a s de de s a rrol l o, ya s e a e n pa í s e s de l S ur o de l N ort e , y a a c t ua r re s pons a bl e m e nt e de s de l a s pos i c i one s t é c ni c a s que de ba n a s um i r. E n l a U P C e l i m pa c t o de l os di s t i nt os e nfoque s e n l a c onfi gura c i ón de l os c urs os de pos t gra do e s e l re s ul t a do de un proc e s o pa rt i c i pa t i vo que ha i nvol uc ra do t a nt o l a ofe rt a form a t i va de gra do e xi s t e nt e (funda m e nt a l m e nt e a t ra vé s de a s i gna t ura s de l i bre e l e c c i ón) c om o l a ofe rt a form a t i va de pos t gra do y de i ni c i a c i ón a l a i nve s t i ga c i ón (a t ra vé s de l os progra m a s de doc t ora do e xi s t e nt e s ). E l a ná l i s i s que a quí s e pre s e nt a i nt e nt a , por un l a do, pone r de m a ni fi e s t o l a s ra í c e s e duc a t i va s e n l a s que s e ba s a e l proc e s o, que s e e nc ue nt ra n e n l a s di fe re nt e s pe rs pe c t i va s de l a s “ e duc a c i ón pa ra ” , y, por ot ro l a do, pre s e nt a r bre ve m e nt e c om o e s t os funda m e nt os s e a rt i c ul a n e n l a c onfi gura c i ón de l os c urs os de pos t gra do ofi c i a l e s de fi ni dos por l a U P C ha s t a l a fe c ha (di c i e m bre 2006)Postprint (published version

Profiling research of the engineering academics who successfully promote education in Sustainable Human Development

Over the last decades, engineering faculties and universities have become increasingly engaged in integrating sustainable development into their different functions. Notwithstanding, more effort is required to effectively integrate sustainability principles as a whole-university approach, and specifically, in technical universities. Scientific literature highlights the main barriers to the success of initiatives that address this shortcoming. A better understanding of the scientific profile of the academics who engage in sustainable development activities can help to develop and promote initiatives for increasing faculty engagement in all academic functions. For this purpose, this study presents a bibliometric analysis of the scientific production of an academic community involved in a European initiative aimed at capacitating engineering academics for sustainable development. Specifically, two groups of academics with different degrees of expertise and involvement in sustainable development were characterized and compared, revealing common trends and similarities of their research production. The results have different implications for future strategies aimed at engaging specific academic profiles in the field of engineering, highlighting especially health science–related fields linked with engineering as a potential opportunity of promoting the integration of sustainable development in engineering education. Further analysis is required to determine the university rankings and their potential implications for the integration of sustainable development, as well as appropriate policies and mechanisms of faculty rewarding and promotion.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version