Smith, A., Linder, B., Landua Thabiso, B. M., Tien, D., de Castro Leal, D., & Reynolds-Cuéllar, P. (2021). Beyond the Classroom: The (Ongoing) IDDS Journey in Community-Engaged Design. In Engenharias e outras práticas técnicas engajadas (Vol. 2, pp. 389–432). Editora da Universidade Estadual da Paraíba.

Abstract

The idea of this trilogy on ‘engineering and other engaged technical practices’ arises from the finding we had about the lack of publications in this area, alongside the immense richness of its experiences and the research issues to be explored. In recent years, there has been a considerable expansion of movements, university networks, organizations, initiatives, and engineering programs acting in underserved communities towards social transformation (against injustices, inequality, etc.), which invite us to rethink the relationship between technology and society. We call this general movement ‘engaged engineering,’ combining the activism of concrete social interventions with changes in engineering training and technological projects. This issue is closely related to the critical tradition of Science and Technology Studies and the philosophy of technology. Starting as a Latin American project, we ended up also including cases from the USA, seeking to capture greater diversity in this field. Thus, this project has become trilingual, and all chapters present their summary in Portuguese, Spanish, and English. This first volume of the trilogy deals with networks, civil society organizations, and collectives, the protagonists themselves being the authors. In the second volume, the focus is on academic teaching-intervention programs. The third volume explores interdisciplinary and decolonial dialogues, as well as new issues arising in the area.