Use circular economy to cut engineering emissions, says G7 Youth Summit member
发布时间：2024年6月4日 11:38
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'I believe we will rise to the challenge': James Forsey, Buro Happold
In February last year I was proud to be chosen as one of four UK representatives to the G7 Youth Summit – an event designed to ensure the voices of younger generations are heard at the highest levels of government.
In February last year I was proud to be chosen as one of four UK representatives to the G7 Youth Summit – an event designed to ensure the voices of younger generations are heard at the highest levels of government.
The task of representatives from across the world was to learn and debate the issues of most importance to younger people in their countries and submit recommendations for change to the G7 leaders. Originally planned to be hosted in Washington DC, instead we have undertaken this task from our bedrooms and living rooms, liaising with representatives from around the world.
My experiences as a young engineer heavily influenced the focus I have had throughout these discussions – how government and industry can do more to tackle the climate crisis.
Although the summit’s format changed dramatically, the goals we wanted to achieve stayed at the forefront of our minds. We wanted to engage with younger people across the UK to understand and highlight the issues most important to them.
Overwhelmingly, our work showed the biggest issue younger people believe they will face throughout their lifetime is climate change and global warming. A huge 88% believe we aren’t acting quickly enough to combat this problem, while almost three-quarters believe that the biggest barriers are either down to insufficient government action or the poor practices of private companies.
For me, this final statistic underlines the importance of what we can do in the built environment – from engineers to contractors and architects – to use our expertise to reduce that impact. I believe that we already understand the principles we should adopt to make progress – those of the circular economy.
As engineers we already talk in broad terms about adopting these principles into our work. However, we don’t yet do so in the context of climate change. We are focused on the cost savings and project efficiencies the circular economy brings, utilising it to deliver our work on time, on budget and to a high quality. This is, of course, vitally important – but there is nothing stopping us from widening our view and adopting it to reduce our carbon footprint.
The beauty of the principle is that it is all encompassing – we can use it to get all the value we can out of materials, energy, and even what we previously saw as waste. We can focus on repurposing products, end our reliance on non-recyclable materials and reduce the amount of energy we use in our work.
It is important to note that all the reasons for our seemingly slow progress don’t sit with engineers – and this brings me back to the need for greater action from government in changing policy. We are bound by regulation, as policy rightly ensures we stick to careful design standards and specifications. However, the fact these safety standards are enshrined in policy makes it difficult for us to implement innovative ways to reduce our carbon footprints. We want to make better use of materials in a safe and more environmentally friendly way, but the rigidity of policy doesn’t always allow that.
Regarding the climate, we are out of time. We need drastic action now, and with many of the world’s major economies turned towards tackling Covid-19, the job is even harder than it was a few months ago. Policy shifts need to be carried out with care and consideration, but we must be able to adopt more sustainable practices in a timely fashion if we’re going to hit the ambitious targets we set for ourselves. Industry and government must work in tandem to move forward with a sustainability agenda which makes a real difference – the risk of taking pioneering approaches is too great if taken without the backing of policymakers.
Regardless of Covid-19, my involvement in the G7 Youth Summit has been a life-changing experience. The recommendations we submitted to the G7 leaders had energy, including the principles of the circular economy, as one of four key areas of focus.
What is important now is that this fight continues. Communicating potential solutions is just the first step, but if we truly believe they can work we must pull together to ensure they are implemented. Our industry has more of an impact on the environment than almost any other, which enables us to make a substantial contribution to this fight if we adopt the right principles.
I believe we have the desire and ability to do that, I believe we can convince government of the same thing, and I believe we will rise to the challenge.
Want the best engineering stories delivered straight to your inbox? The Professional Engineering newsletter gives you vital updates on the most cutting-edge engineering and exciting new job opportunities. To sign up, click here.
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
My experiences as a young engineer heavily influenced the focus I have had throughout these discussions – how government and industry can do more to tackle the climate crisis.
Although the summit’s format changed dramatically, the goals we wanted to achieve stayed at the forefront of our minds. We wanted to engage with younger people across the UK to understand and highlight the issues most important to them.
Overwhelmingly, our work showed the biggest issue younger people believe they will face throughout their lifetime is climate change and global warming. A huge 88% believe we aren’t acting quickly enough to combat this problem, while almost three-quarters believe that the biggest barriers are either down to insufficient government action or the poor practices of private companies.
For me, this final statistic underlines the importance of what we can do in the built environment – from engineers to contractors and architects – to use our expertise to reduce that impact. I believe that we already understand the principles we should adopt to make progress – those of the circular economy.
As engineers we already talk in broad terms about adopting these principles into our work. However, we don’t yet do so in the context of climate change. We are focused on the cost savings and project efficiencies the circular economy brings, utilising it to deliver our work on time, on budget and to a high quality. This is, of course, vitally important – but there is nothing stopping us from widening our view and adopting it to reduce our carbon footprint.
The beauty of the principle is that it is all encompassing – we can use it to get all the value we can out of materials, energy, and even what we previously saw as waste. We can focus on repurposing products, end our reliance on non-recyclable materials and reduce the amount of energy we use in our work.
It is important to note that all the reasons for our seemingly slow progress don’t sit with engineers – and this brings me back to the need for greater action from government in changing policy. We are bound by regulation, as policy rightly ensures we stick to careful design standards and specifications. However, the fact these safety standards are enshrined in policy makes it difficult for us to implement innovative ways to reduce our carbon footprints. We want to make better use of materials in a safe and more environmentally friendly way, but the rigidity of policy doesn’t always allow that.
Regarding the climate, we are out of time. We need drastic action now, and with many of the world’s major economies turned towards tackling Covid-19, the job is even harder than it was a few months ago. Policy shifts need to be carried out with care and consideration, but we must be able to adopt more sustainable practices in a timely fashion if we’re going to hit the ambitious targets we set for ourselves. Industry and government must work in tandem to move forward with a sustainability agenda which makes a real difference – the risk of taking pioneering approaches is too great if taken without the backing of policymakers.
Regardless of Covid-19, my involvement in the G7 Youth Summit has been a life-changing experience. The recommendations we submitted to the G7 leaders had energy, including the principles of the circular economy, as one of four key areas of focus.
What is important now is that this fight continues. Communicating potential solutions is just the first step, but if we truly believe they can work we must pull together to ensure they are implemented. Our industry has more of an impact on the environment than almost any other, which enables us to make a substantial contribution to this fight if we adopt the right principles.
I believe we have the desire and ability to do that, I believe we can convince government of the same thing, and I believe we will rise to the challenge.
Want the best engineering stories delivered straight to your inbox? The Professional Engineering newsletter gives you vital updates on the most cutting-edge engineering and exciting new job opportunities. To sign up, click here.
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
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