2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Engineering for Good (E4G) programs have grown in the US for more than 20 years and exist in different forms such as majors, minors, certificates, courses, projects, field trips, study abroad opportunities, EWB-type volunteering activities, etc. One of the most salient challenges that these programs face is building relationships with communities and universities abroad that are long-lasting, trusting, effective, reciprocal for all parties, and attentive to local contexts. Often, E4G programs enter into projects with communities abroad without fully understanding the context (historical, political, institutional, cultural, etc.), the diversity of stakeholders, the complexities within and among communities, the full dimensions of the opportunities available, and the unintended consequences of assumptions, tools, and engagement practices involved. Using a case study of Humanitarian Engineering in Colombia (with the understanding that it needs to be modified for different contexts and countries), this paper will outline a model for relationship building abroad that includes 1) understanding the reasons for and assessing both site selection and stakeholder choice; 2) methods for relationship building that take into account institutional and organizational differences; 3) what to expect in non-US engineering education environments and how to adjust conceptually and methodologically to these differences; and 4) how to fund, support, and maintain these relationships in the long term. By providing an exemplary model for engineering-community relationship building, this work aims at contributing to the evolution and maturing of E4G programs.