SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. - Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is scheduled to host a big international engineering conference this month. According to the school, with global projects in India, Thailand and Nicaragua, Engineers Without Borders-Cal Poly is undertaking a new project that's closer to home. The student club will host Engineers Without Borders' (EWB) West Coast regional conference at on campus Oct. 19-21.
The Cal Poly group was recently named EWB-USA's Premier Student Chapter. As organizers of the conference, the students adopted Cal Poly's Learn by Doing credo as the event theme.
"We chose this theme because we think it reflects EWB's and the school's shared values of service, collaboration, ingenuity and leadership," said Aaron Opdyke, president of Cal Poly chapter and a civil engineering senior.
The regional conference will focus on low-tech sustainable engineering solutions that meet basic human needs on a global basis; best practices for international development projects; and how to obtain funding to continue the student and professional members' work.
"The weekend features 26 speakers addressing a spectrum of challenges, opportunities and best practices in sustainable engineering and global development," said Naomi Willis, conference coordinator and a Cal Poly civil engineering senior.
Key speakers include Dave Aabo, founder of the nonprofit Waves for Development; Cory Glazier, founder of Sustainable and Comprehensive Humanitarian Assistance Planning (SCHAP), a nonprofit dedicated to poverty alleviation; and Cathy Leslie, executive director of EWB-USA. Breakout sessions include developing cultural understanding, community engagement and appropriate technology.
