Blog
Stories from EWB Australia
The Handi-Plough tool has one simple job: to empower Cambodian women farmers
In Cambodia, nearly 80% of people live rurally and many operate small farms to feed their families and generate income. These agricultural holdings are often run, and worked, by women who face unique challenges in the field. EWB engineers Mengheang Hak, Mitch Horrocks...
How traditional sand filtration methods are solving complex engineering problems in Cambodia
As the Mekong River ambles south from its origin in the Sanjianyuan nature reserve in China, it passes through Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand before arriving in Cambodia where it fractures into winding ribbons that create islands in the flow. The people of Koh Tnoat...
Engineer by profession, engineer in spirit
Caption: Environmental engineer and EWB Field Professional volunteer, Ella, in Pu Ngaol village. In 2023, two different community contexts were offered to universities delivering the EWB Challenge Series program. The overseas context looked at the aspirations and...
Electric Mobility in Rural Cambodia
The future of mobility technology is exciting, and will lead to higher quality, more affordable, easy to use and universally accessible products and services. It is critical that this emerging field keeps up with or leads broader global trends in mobility, such as the...
Supporting diversity at Mardi Gras 2020
“In Australia, LGBTQIA+ engineers are often asked, “why do you need to be out at work?” It’s not so much of being out, it’s more that I like to be transparent about who I am.“ - Tana Tan Dr Tana Tan is half Thai, half Malaysian, fully engineer, and fully gay (and...
Why EWB Australia’s professional training is unique
Do you feel frustrated with wanting to influence change and have an impactful career but don’t know how? EWB Training Programs guide professionals, like you, who want to use their work as a tool for positive impact by expanding your understanding of emerging global...
Melbourne Climate Change Event Wrap
On a Thursday evening in February we hosted a dialogue around climate action and sector responsibility. “Reimagining the role of the technical sector in the face of climate crisis” was a sell-out event, a nod to the passion and dedication of our community to ensure...
Work on water guidelines in Vanuatu
In Vanuatu, the Climate Crisis presents new challenges around access to safe water. Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG6) is: CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION: Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. Worldwide, 2 out of 5 people do...
Wetlands sanitation on the Tonle Sap Lake
World Wetlands Day (2nd February) raises global awareness about the importance of wetlands and the need to restore, conserve and promote sustainable use. The day was founded by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in 1971, where contracting nations commit to identifying...
The EWB Challenge on the world stage
This year’s EWB Challenge Showcase was delivered in collaboration with the World Engineers Convention (WEC) and created a dynamic atmosphere that sets the bar for engagement and activation of the engineering and engineering education sectors. Each year, the EWB...
Portrait of a new stereotype
MePatricia Tatel, a student from the University of Queensland, joined as a volunteer on EWB's Torres Strait Regioneering trip last month. Led by EWB/Mecca MPower grant recipient Erin Hughes, the trip aimed to build on the school outreach work that EWB has previously...
1000 young leaders unleash on the SDGs
1000 participants. 150 facilitators. 9 days. 1 location. That's the United Nations UNLEASH, an annual program that started in 2018 (and will continue to 2030), where 1000 young leaders from various fields (and from over 160 countries) come together to generate new,...
Scoping for best-practice
Much has been written about the EWB Challenge—our ground-breaking, first-year University program, now in its 13th year. Embedded into the curriculum of 28 Australian and New Zealand Universities (and adopted by EWB organisations around the world), the EWB Challenge...
Water shortage solution for Cambodian families
4 EWB Field Professional volunteers placed with RWC since 2015 Underground rainwater tank pilot tested in 10 households (57 individuals total) Over 20 RWC staff and interns capacity strengthened Climate change has brought about significant drought and rain-scarcity...
Link Research Symposium 2019
On Monday 2nd December RMIT kindly hosted our annual Link Research Symposium. The Symposium is the closing event of the year where students engaged in the research program present their findings to staff, peers and members of the engineering education community. It...
ATEC* about to roll out first PAYGO-tech for biodigesters and expand across Asia
ATEC* Biodigesters (ATEC), an Australian Social Enterprise, has raised US$1,600,000 in a Series-B equity round to rollout the world’s first PAYGO (pay-as-you-go) model for biodigesters as well as to expand its operations from Cambodia to Bangladesh. The investment was...
Workshopping the new national guiding principles for sanitation in Cambodia
A key focus of our recent work in Cambodia has been the development of National Guiding Principles on Sanitation in Challenging Environments for Rural Households, a highly consultative process involving government (national and provincial), NGOs, UNICEF, WHO,...
How demonstration toilets inform the socialisation of Vanuatu’s sanitation and hygiene guidelines
On Vanuatu’s 85 islands, many people live in challenging sanitation environments, including areas that are drought or flood-prone, coastal, on hard rock, with high groundwater or in difficult social contexts. Sanitation issues in Vanuatu are exacerbated by natural...
Teach a girl to fish
Erin and the MECCA-M Power grant: Chapter One. On the eve of setting off on my trip to the Torres Strait as part of my undertaking for the MECCA-M Power grant, I’ve been reflecting on how this project is a fantastic synergy of my personal journey. A very strong theme...
Announcing our 2020 EWB Challenge community partner
Each year, the EWB Challenge works alongside a community partner to design a brief that can directly address the challenges of a specific community. For many years we’ve focused this work on our overseas partnerships, with past Challenges exploring solutions for...
The EWB Challenge Series – from first year to post grad
For over a decade, EWB has worked with universities across Australia and New Zealand to deliver the EWB Challenge, engaging emerging engineers (as well as students in associated disciplines) in a range of real-world challenges. Students are entering their careers in...
School Outreach volunteer survey results
School Outreach is the largest program within EWB’s Schools Portfolio reaching approximately 20,000 across Australia annually powered by volunteers from EWB’s chapter and corporate partner network. University chapters are a huge contributor to this program. While the...
Addressing the diversity challenge in education
EWB Australia recently took part in the third Women in Engineering and IT Symposium hosted by UTS and UNSW, a two day initiative that brings together universities across Australia who are working towards increasing the participation of women in STEM degrees,...
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