Introduction

Our joint IChemE Safety Centre event at the National Football Museum in Manchester, sponsored by RAS Ltd on Ethical Practice – What, Why and How? brought together a wealth of experts:

Marlene Kanga – Chair of the IChemE Safety Centre

Prof David Bogle – Emeritus Professor of Chemical Engineering UCL, Past President, Institution of Chemical Engineers, Chair of Royal Academy of Engineering / Engineering Council Engineering Ethics Reference Group

Emma Crichton – Innovation Director, Engineers without Borders

Sonali Patel – Graduate Civil Engineer at Tony Gee and Partners and

 Dr. Sarah Jayne Hitt – Professor of Liberal Studies, New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering (NMITE), Project Manager of Ethics and Sustainability Toolkits, Engineering Professors Council.

The panel, chaired by Sarah, discussed how ethical practice is fundamental to professional practice and social responsibility. Not only is it an effective insurance policy, mitigating risk, it can give organisations competitive advantage. Serious risks can occur when an organisational culture is at odds with its stated values and there is a gap between ‘what we say’ and ‘what we do’. Increasingly, professional institutions are laying out agendas for change requiring multi stakeholder engagement and codifying ethical practice for their members.

Questions from the audience circulated around, how can engineers, designers and other professionals incorporate ethical thinking into the infrastructure, products and services they develop so that future generations are not left to pick up the pieces?

The event emphasised the critical importance of ethical considerations within engineering practices, particularly considering emerging global challenges.

Key themes and discussions

Several key themes emerged during the meeting, centred around the necessity of integrating ethical principles into engineering education and daily professional practice.

• The importance of ethical practices in process safety: the discussion highlighted the crucial role of ethics in ensuring process safety. Process safety encompasses the prevention of incidents and accidents associated with industrial processes, particularly those involving hazardous materials. Ethical considerations in this context might include:
  • Prioritising safety over cost-cutting measures
  • Ensuring transparency and accountability in reporting safety data
  • Adhering to rigorous safety standards and regulations
  • Considering the potential environmental and social impacts of industrial processes.
• Engineering ethics and the next generation: the panel emphasised the significance of engineering ethics, especially in preparing the next generation of engineers. With projections indicating that individuals under 30 will comprise 70-75% of the engineering workforce by 2050, the need for robust ethical training is paramount. These future engineers will face complex challenges, requiring them to make ethically sound decisions in a rapidly changing world. The emphasis on the next generation underscores the long-term vision of the Hazards Forum, recognizing that ethical practices must be ingrained in the profession’s future leaders.
• The gap in engineering education: A significant concern raised during the meeting was the perceived lack of emphasis on ethics within current engineering education curricula. This deficiency is particularly alarming given the increasing complexity of global challenges, such as climate change and biodiversity loss. These issues demand not only technical expertise but also a strong ethical compass to navigate the complex trade-offs and potential consequences of engineering decisions. The lack of adequate ethical training could lead to:
  • Engineers making decisions based solely on technical or economic considerations, neglecting potential ethical implications
  • A weakening of public trust in the engineering profession
  • An inability to effectively address complex societal challenges that require both technical and ethical understanding.
• Global challenges and the need for ethical decision-making: The meeting participants explicitly linked the need for stronger ethical frameworks in engineering to pressing global issues like climate change and biodiversity loss. These challenges are inherently complex and involve significant ethical dimensions. For instance:
  • Climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies require engineers to consider the long-term impacts of their work on future generations and the environment
  • Biodiversity loss raises ethical questions about the balance between human development and the preservation of natural ecosystems
  • Sustainable development requires engineers to consider the social, economic, and environmental impacts of their projects in a holistic and ethical manner.

Call to action and next steps

The event concluded with a clear call to action: to embed ethics more deeply into engineering education and decision-making processes. This includes:

• Integrating ethics into curricula: Engineering programs should incorporate comprehensive ethics training into their curricula, providing students with the tools and frameworks to analyse and address ethical dilemmas.
• Promoting ethical awareness in practice: Practicing engineers should be encouraged to consider ethical implications in their daily work, fostering a culture of ethical awareness within the profession.
• Continuous professional development: Ongoing professional development opportunities should be provided to help engineers stay abreast of evolving ethical standards and challenges.

Conclusion

The Hazards Forum meeting underscored the critical link between engineering practice and ethical considerations. In a world facing increasingly complex challenges, the engineering profession must prioritise ethical decision-making to ensure sustainability, safety, and public trust. The call to action to strengthen ethical training and awareness represents a crucial step towards building a more responsible and ethical engineering profession for the future.