SAN DIEGO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / March 29, 2022 / The world's problems don't stop at disciplinary boundaries. Disease, poverty, inequity and social injustice, humanitarian crises, and climate change are just a few of the interlinked global crises challenging us to take a more holistic view of the health of our planet and our future.
To meet these challenges, the University of San Diego (USD) has created the Master of Science in Engineering for Sustainability and Health (MESH) degree program to provide today's problem solvers with a purposeful and critical transdisciplinary practice incorporating a complex system approach to sustainability and health.
A collaboration between sciences, health, social sciences, and other disciplines in order to be able to make an impact on the environment and create a global difference is a new way of thinking for our society and planet. The MESH degree was designed by engineering and environmental experts in close collaboration with key industry stakeholders to offer a unique curriculum for individuals looking to be change-makers, innovators, and disruptors from all disciplines and backgrounds.
The premise of the new program is derived from the think-tank that many of the problems we face may be related to our engineered world, as many innovations are conceived in a vacuum that only considers the task at hand. The solutions cannot come from engineers alone and health and humanitarian efforts must come into play. There is a critical need to work collaboratively across disciplinary boundaries and create substantial alternatives to our current systems. The MESH program was designed for those across professions who are passionate about addressing the challenges facing our natural and built environment.
"We are looking for visionaries who are determined to make a substantive, positive difference for planetary health," says Dr. Caroline Baille, Co-Academic Director of MESH. "We want to foster a holistic understanding of what we think of as 'sustainability' to better comprehend the long-term impacts of the work we do within the human-built world."
The global need to achieve more sustainable human and economic development has brought significant opportunities to environmental engineering and related fields in sustainability. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that two of the top three fastest growing occupations from 2019 to 2020 were green jobs. In fact, seven out of the ten fastest-growing occupations concerned areas related to sustainability or health.
"The difference between this program and other similar programs, is that this program is not just for engineers or environmental scientists - it's for people who want to work together toward sustainability and how to achieve this in an innovative way outside of their traditional disciplinary silos," said Dr. Paul Kadetz, Co-Academic Director of MESH." This program offers a space for students to co-create, and pushes them outside of their comfort zones, to really 'think outside the box' of their disciplines."
With a class format that is 100% online, the program targets busy professionals who want to earn their MESH degree while balancing the demands of work and family life. It takes approximately 20 months (5 semesters) to complete and is now accepting applications for the term starting September 6. The deadline to enroll for the Fall semester is August 1.
Even more exciting is there are $1,000 scholarships being offered to the first 10 students to enroll thanks to the very generous donation of the Paragon Institute of Innovation. Paragon actively works to amplify imaginative solutions to issues, champion for the environment to government leadership and members of private enterprise, and cultivate community involvement to generate change on all levels. The kick-off of this innovative degree program is being done in conjunction with the March 31st "Women Imagine the Future Fund," which will provide scholarships of global south women (Africa and South America) to take the program.
www.sandiego.edu/nonprofit
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO
The University of San Diego sets the standard for an engaged, contemporary Catholic university where innovative Changemakers confront humanity's urgent challenges. With more than 9,000 students from 69 countries and 50 states, USD is the youngest independent institution on the U.S. News & World Report list of top 100 universities in the United States. USD's eight academic divisions include the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Business, the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, the School of Law, the School of Leadership and Education Sciences, the Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science, the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, and the Division of Professional and Continuing Education. USD's Envisioning 2024 strategic plan capitalizes on the university's recent progress and aligns new strategic goals with current strengths to help shape a vision for the future as the university looks ahead to its 75th anniversary in the year 2024.
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SOURCE: USD - MESH
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