Engineers without Borders

My response to an interview in Dumbo Feather on Design Hub (A uni thing that could be written as a blog comment and I did it pretty quickly):

Does Engineers without Borders Give a Damn?

I was blown away by the impact of Engineers without Borders. I’ve heard a little about them through a friend (Susannah) but didn’t quite realise the vision and the heart behind what they do. Engineers without Borders goes so much further in considering humanity over the immediate environmental or surface level social issue. They approach issues of poverty and need willingly with their skills. Engineers without Borders design for the community, there is an interview with designer Cameron Sinclair and he talks about providing a soccer balls before shelter to meet the social and emotional needs of the people before treating refugees as simply numbers in need of shelter. Engineers without Borders present their own soccer ball yet in their own expertise, sometimes this is shelter, sometimes water but with people in mind before environment. They work collaboratively with young and old to harness passion and wisdom. This goes further into creating systems that established to meet great needs that cannot be as strongly impacted by one. Yet engineers without Borders is the brainchild of one dissatisfied person, Danny Almago and there is something to be said for the impact that one can have on others. From initial failure to see where his aesthetic and technical background fit with ethical issues, Engineers without Borders now exists to include students in a holistic approach to work and life and the world.