Using Human-Centered Design to Connect Engineering Concepts to Sustainable Development Goals

Background. Engineering design is widely recognized as a field that can generate key innovations for complex problems, such as those elucidated in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, engineering design training is not widely accessible to the global community, particularly to people experiencing the challenges that the SDGs are striving to address. Purpose. This manuscript describes the Ignite program created by the Center for Global Women's Health Technologies (GWHT) at Duke University, which uses the human-centered design framework to apply engineering design concepts to address specific challenges associated with the SDGs. Design/Method. Undergraduate students participate in a design course (BME 290) to learn how to create and deliver a technological solution to increase access to light at night, which is a significant challenge in many communities around the globe. A subset of the undergraduate students partnered with an energy-poor community in which they implemented a curriculum based on the skills learned in BME 290. Results. Since 2014, 110 Duke students have taken BME 290, and 22 of those students traveled internationally, collectively teaching 275 students in Kenya, India, and Guatemala. Students in Kenya formed an engineering club and taught the curriculum to an additional 52 peers. Duke students also trained 15 other university students, both in the United States and Guatemala, who have taught the curriculum to an additional 150 students in Guatemala, which illustrates the scalability and sustainability of the curriculum across countries, communities, and cultures. Conclusions. By integrating human-centered design and the SDGs into engineering curricula and targeting communities that work with women and girls, we believe the Ignite program can impact three of the SDGs – renewable energy, quality education, and gender equality. © 2020