We appreciate the acknowledgement that environmental engineering is a welcome space for women, but we feel that a few points in the article deserve more attention.
As environmental engineers, we define our field as designing solutions to challenges related to water, soil and air through lenses focused on protecting the health of human and ecological systems. There is no one identity within environmental engineering; rather, it is a foundation for contributing to a variety of careers. We believe that environmental engineering is an inherently interdisciplinary field, which makes the field attractive. There are many connections and opportunities for collaboration with other disciplines. Those of us in the senior class are planning on going into careers involving public health, environmental education, consulting, sustainable product development, climate change resiliency and air quality research.
We would like to address the implications for women in this field when environmental engineering is labeled as a “softer,” less technologically-oriented, less serious engineering discipline, because these labels have negative connotations for women in science and engineering. These labels maintain gender stereotypes within engineering and do not leave room for students to break through the confines of gender binaries in STEM fields. This has negative implications for attempts to make a welcoming space for students of all gender identities within the environmental engineering major in the future.
At our core, we are deeply based in engineering foundations and skills. To be environmental engineers, we develop backgrounds in physical chemistry, mechanics, hydraulics, fluid dynamics, biology, public health, occupational and environmental safety, urban design, infrastructure integrity, computer programming and policy. Describing environmental engineering as a “softer” form of engineering that lacks technological focus does not fully recognize the breadth of our skill set, and perpetuates stereotypes of women as less competent in using technological tools for research and other careers. This definition also limits the full potential of our field for leadership, as many women go into careers in environmental consulting and project management.
Environmental engineering encompasses a wide variety of skills and leadership opportunities that allow people of many identities to find a space to pursue their interests and to collaborate on pressing issues. Here are a few examples of why our classmates at Tufts are environmental engineers:
“I basically grew up outdoors and have always been interested in what impacts we as humans have on the world around us. Environmental engineering has helped me learn not only what we have done, but how to apply math, chemistry, biology, physics and computer science to undo some of these impacts. I couldn't be happier in the discipline I chose to study and hope to continue doing it for a long time to come.” - Craig Drennan, 2018
“Freshman fall, I took Climate Change Engineering and fell in love with the interdisciplinary view of climate change and the environment that this class provided. Since then, I am an environmental engineer because of the combination of the technical aspects of engineering with societal, economical and political perspectives. All of these points of view must be taken into account in order to come up with a reasonable solution to an issue in order to do good in the world, both for people and the environment.” - Jenny Skerker, 2017
“When I came to Tufts, I was struggling to decide which of my academic interests to pursue. I did not want to choose between technology/design and the humanities. In environmental engineering, I have a way to combine these pursuits by working on technology to improve water and sanitation,working on public health to work on finding sustainable solutions and working on proper implementations and communication skills by writing reports that are accessible in a consulting context. These skills allow me to have multiple outlets to work on projects spanning many fields, because environmental engineering gives me the base to collaborate.” - Emma Inhorn, 2017
“Sustainability is driving our policy discussions, product development, investments and activism. It’s an industry-agnostic priority just about everywhere. This is crazy exciting for us, because environmental engineering is accelerating from its origins in remediation to its future as a frontier field for all forms of development. For both the professors and students studying in this program, environmental restoration means more than just "awareness" of the issues -- we’re looking for the technical competency to have impact. Yeah, you’ll see a lot of friendly faces and an outdoorsy community, but there’s serious talent, diversity and civic-mindedness urging everyone.” - Alex Rappaport, 2017
“I switched into the School of Engineering my first year because I wanted to learn why environmental systems interact on a micro level. As I’ve delved deeper into environmental engineering, I’ve realized that so many of my interests in ecological design, environmental education and urban public health intersect with the major. I love the vibrancy and complexity of environmental engineering!” - Erynne van Zee, 2017
Environmental engineering is not just attractive to women for its “humanitarian values,” but rather for the depth and breadth of its interdisciplinary framework allowing students to contribute to pressing local and global issues. While we are fortunate to have so many female-identifying role models in our field, this does not implicate environmental engineering as a “soft” science, or one that is more suited for women, because this label fails to recognize the dynamic nature of the field. We love talking about why we are environmental engineers. If you are interested in the field, have more questions or are looking for interdisciplinary collaboration, please reach out.
Editor’s note: If you would like to send your response or make an op-ed contribution to the Opinion section, please email us at tuftsdailyoped@gmail.com. The Opinion section looks forward to hearing from you.
