Beyond the Codes_Repositioning towards sustainable development

This paper "Beyond the Codes: Repositioning Towards a Sustainable Development," presented in 2013, underscores the crucial role of effective communication in driving sustainability within engineering practice. While traditional engineering approaches have relied heavily on codes of measurement and standardization to ensure safety and efficiency, the paper argues for a fundamental repositioning of engineering towards sustainability. This repositioning, depicted as going "beyond the codes," urges engineers to integrate sustainability principles into their work.

Engineers must recognize that sustainability encompasses environmental stewardship, social equity, and economic prosperity, transcending mere compliance with technical standards. This broader mandate requires engineers to engage in dialogue with diverse stakeholders, including policymakers, industry leaders, and communities. Effective communication becomes paramount in fostering collaboration and garnering support for sustainable initiatives.

Moreover, engineers must embrace a new mindset that positions sustainability as a core aspect of their profession. They must advocate for sustainability within their organizations, challenging existing norms, and championing innovative solutions. This shift in perspective requires engineers to become proficient communicators, capable of articulating the value proposition of sustainability to various audiences.

Internal communication within engineering firms is equally vital, fostering a culture of collaboration and innovation. Engineers must share knowledge, expertise, and best practices to accelerate the adoption of sustainable technologies and practices. Visual communication tools, such as data visualization, can aid in conveying complex technical information effectively.

Ultimately, the paper emphasizes that effective communication is essential for repositioning engineering towards sustainability. By embracing communication as a core competency and championing sustainability, engineers can navigate the complexities of the 21st century and pave the way for a more sustainable future.

1. Beyond the Codes: Repositioning Towards
a Sustainable Development
by Engr. Nimot Muili MSC; MNSE,
Civil Infrastructures Engineer
Lead Auditor -Quality Management System ISO 9001:
2008
Chairman, Association of Professional Women
Engineers of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter (APWEN Lagos)

2. * INTRODUCTIONS&DEFINITIONS
* WHEREWEARE
* THENEED
* REQUIREDKEYFACTORS
* CHALLENGES
* BASICCOMMUNICATIONCHANNEL
* FACTS
* SOLUTION
* CONCLUSION
CONTENT

3. INTRODUCTIONS& DEFINITION
According to International Institute of Sustainable Development, IISD,
"SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT in a simple term means development that
meets the NEEDS OF THE PRESENT without compromising the ability of
FUTURE GENERATIONS to meet their own needs.
NEED-Necessity or Obligation
FUTURE -Time regarded as still to come.
Why are these terms important to us as Female
Child, Mothers, Wives . . . and Professionals

4. INTRODUCTIONS& DEFINITION
AsProfessionals wesupport families (directly & Indirectly) by cooperating with
others (Professionals & Non Professionals) to
-Earn Wages
-Preserve Professional & Traditional knowledge
-Maintain Biodiversity,
-Ensure HouseholdFood security
-and Maintain Nutritional Needs & Balance
As engineers and project managers we are involved in one or more of the following
project management phases either as Team Leads or Team Member
 Initiation
 Planning
 Execution
 Monitoring / Control
 Closing

5. Women are just under half of the general
workforce in the various industries . . . Yet the
custodian of the future
THENEEDTOREPOSITION. . .

6. REQUIREDKEYFACTORS
As professionals, strategy for sustainable development involves bringing existing initiatives
closer to an effective strategy, a vision and set of co-coordinated mechanisms and
processes to improve their complementarity, smooth out inconsistencies, and fill gaps when
needed. These includes :
•People-centered: To ensure long-term beneficial impacts on all
•Long-term vision with a clear timeframe
•Cost / Budgetary priorities: to ensure that plans have the financial resources to achieve
the desire objectives
•Effective participation. to open up debate to new ideas and sources of information;
expose issues that need to be addressed; enable problems, needs and preferences to be
expressed; identify the capabilities required to address them; and develop a consensus
on the need for action that leads to better implementation.
•commitment and influential attitude
•Develop and build on existing capacity
•Strategize to expand your network

7. CHALLENGES
•Lack of Confidence –sometimes we don't always believe
that we have something of value to say or that we deserve
to be taken seriously.
•Appearance (women tend to be judged far more harshly for wardrobe
malfunctions than men), these include
* Clothing
* Make-up
* Composure
* Physical appearance -Body Size , Facial Look, Dressing, Hair Style
* Voice -A soft or high-pitched voice could be a challenge. As women,
we are associated with soft voice naturally which is sometimes
associated with timidnessor lack of assurance. A soft voice can also
make it difficult for the audience to hear, which then makes it
challenging for them to stay engaged.
•Lack Collaboration / Cooperation (Internal & external)

8. CHALLENGES
One of the major challenges of sustainable development is
Ineffective Communication
oInformation overload –No Assessment & Evaluation
onot readily available / Affordability
ohard to evaluate
onot output-oriented enough
olack the necessary knowledge and skills for strategic communication
oFocus on convincing people individually while their social sphere is not analyzed
oCommunication is an end-of-pipe activity, isolated from the rest of a project
oContent and message are secondary and cannot answer “why” or “what” questions
oTarget Audience Uncategorized
oIrrelevancy –unfiltered Information
oInappropriate Medium
oLack of effective Policies, Procedure and / or Technology

9. BASICCOMMUNICATIONCOMPONENT
The four (4)basic requirements
•Sender -Source (where the message originates)
•The Message
•Transmitter /+ Transmission Medium (device used to transmit
the message)
•Receiver / Destination -(Medium used to receive the message /
will be placed)
Sender
Receiver
Medium
Message

10. COMMUNICATIONCHANNEL
To promote good Information Exchange, there is need to establish efficient
communication and promote REGULAR FEEDBACK ANALYSIS

11. FACTS
Its no news that the world is now a global village . . . . Yes
BUThow well are we connected? How close are We?
The fact is that Information and development are like Siamese twins.

12. FACTS
For Nigeria the trend shows that Mobile
Communication Channels is common and
growing to become the default communication
channel. These mobile devices affords the
owner the option of VOICE, VIDEO AND
DATA communication all in one.

13. SOLUTIONS
•Self-Confidence and assertiveness –This is a long term endeavor.
* Visualize yourself feeling confident and recognized, by reading your
stakeholders reactions, that you are indeed adding value
* Know something about your meeting(s) / projects and take time to be
extremely well prepared
* anticipate what questions , problems and approach to
answering and solving them
•Appearance -Focus, Smile, Show Commitment and embracing
strategies that will make it happen
•Be discipline –Promote What You do & What You Plan to Do
Remember -No fine work can be done without concentration
and self-sacrifice and toil and doubt. ” —Max Beerbohm

14. SOLUTION
•Leadership –Lead by Action
•Collaboration –Show concern
•Innovate -to make impact, Efficient, Quality & Affordability
•Promote Effective Advocacy Programme
•Show Responsibility & Cooperation
•Take Up New Challenges -Explore new grounds, Be open to
meet new challenges
•Access & Evaluate New Technological requirements

15. SOLUTION
Effective Communication should be concise and straight forward,
effective & affordable on the go to :
•supports effective participation and decision making
•Communication is a crucial strategy
•Improve management tool
•Conflict resolution
•management knowledge and information systems
•helps balancing top-down and bottom-up approaches
•Monitoring & Evaluation of long-term vision
•building alliances for goal-and actions
•setting priorities
•logical consistency in unfolding plans
•Powerful elements for strategy
•managing activities, budgets and human resources systematically

16. Summary
•Have a strategic plan
•Collaborate with others
•Be open to new challenges
•Establish Effective Communication
•Evaluate your targeted audience
•Define your challenges -Technological as well as
personal
•Set realistic expectation -Perfection is achieved with
continuous practice
•Keep your eye on your set goals
•Carry out continuous appraisal

17. Remember . . .
•Said is not yet heard
•Heard is not yet understood
•Understood is not yet approved
•And approved is not yet done
All hand must be on deck to achieve a Sustainable
Environment . . . It begins with YOU, spread the
news.
Together we can make it happen

19. COMMENTS/ QUESTIONS

20. MYCONTACT
[email protected]
[email protected]