Just Transition (part one): Sustainability as a wicked problem
ModulesJust Transition (part one): Sustainability as a wicked problem
This Micromodule introduces sustainability as a wicked problem and highlights the importance of Perspective Taking, Systems Thinking, and Negotiation in engineering. Through interactive exercises, participants will evaluate environmental and social impacts, make informed material and design choices, and reflect on engineers’ broader responsibilities in creating sustainable solutions.
By the end of the module participants should be able to:
- Understand the wicked nature of sustainability and recognize the complexity of balancing environmental, social, and economic dimensions in engineering decisions.
- Apply transversal skills — Perspective Taking, Systems Thinking, and Negotiation — to analyze and solve complex sustainability challenges in engineering contexts.
- Evaluate material and design choices considering environmental impacts, societal wellbeing, and ethical responsibilities to promote sustainable engineering practices.
- Reflect on the broader responsibilities of engineers in creating solutions that are socially responsible, environmentally sound, and technically effective.
Sustainability as a wicked problem
The purpose of this exercise is to facilitate an understanding of the character of sustainability as a wicked problem. Accordingly, participants are expected, after watching the video, to respond to the following multiple-choice questions.
Exploring Skills for Sustainable Problem-Solving.
The purpose of this exercise is to reinforce your understanding of sustainability as a wicked problem and to highlight the importance of three key transversal skills: Perspective Taking, Systems Thinking, and Negotiation. After reading the text below, complete each blank by selecting the most appropriate word from the list provided. This activity is designed to help you reflect on how these skills contribute to addressing complex sustainability challenges and improving problem-solving in engineering contexts.
Adopt perspective, think systematically, negotiate, be fair.
This final exercise helps you reflect on the role of engineers in promoting sustainability. Read each statement carefully and select True (T) or False (F). Consider environmental, social, and ethical impacts as well as the transversal skills—Perspective Taking, Systems Thinking, and Negotiation—you explored in previous activities. This activity reinforces your understanding of sustainable decision-making in engineering.
