Interview: Engineers Without Borders director Katie Cresswell-Maynard

The engineering community likes to point out that few other professions can have as profound and direct an impact on changing the world. Whilst true, the day-to-day reality of many engineers may not always tally with that sentiment, with a significant part of the workforce inevitably spending most of their careers largely confined to a desk. 

One workplace that delivers on the hard-hat archetype is Engineers Without Borders (EWB), a global collective of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) with a focus on international development and education. Loosely modelled after Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF/Doctors Without Borders), EWB has evolved since the early 1980s into a network of more than 40 national chapters, covering virtually every corner of the globe. In 2004, Engineers Without Borders International (EWB-I) was founded to help foster collaboration and information sharing among the member groups.

“It’s all about how do we use engineering skills and expertise to support people, and predominantly, you know, the most vulnerable people and communities around the world,” EWB-I executive director Katie Cresswell-Maynard told The Engineer.