Foreword

It is a privilege to contribute to Humanitarian Engineering: Fundamentals, Exercises, and Applications, edited by Dr Bryann Avendaño-Uribe and colleagues. This open textbook represents a timely contribution to engineering education, one that responds to the growing need for engineers who are not only technically capable, but also ethically grounded, socially aware, and able to work meaningfully with communities.

Supported by the University of Canterbury Library’s Open Educational Resources Fund, this text has been developed with commitment to accessibility and openness. More importantly, it has been shaped by practice. The book draws on real teaching experience, field engagement, and collaboration with communities, offering an approach to humanitarian engineering that is grounded, reflective, and pragmatic.

Rather than positioning humanitarian engineering as a niche or add-on, this book treats it as a way of thinking and practising engineering in complex social, cultural, and environmental contexts. Central to this is a participatory and community-driven approach. Across its chapters, the text consistently emphasises listening, co-creation, dignity, and systems thinking. Engineering challenges are presented not as purely technical problems, but as socio-technical ones, where technical decisions are inseparable from their human consequences.

The structure of the book reflects this intent. By combining foundational concepts, practical exercises, and applied case studies, it supports learning across classrooms, workshops, simulations, and field settings. Students are invited to engage actively with uncertainty, context, and ethical responsibility, developing the capacity to work with communities rather than for them. In doing so, the book helps cultivate capabilities such as empathy, adaptability, and critical reflection, qualities that are essential for contemporary engineering practice.

The case studies and exercises illustrate how humanitarian engineering principles can be applied across diverse contexts, including water and sanitation, emergency response, fire risk, and community development. These examples highlight that effective engineering interventions depend as much on relationships, trust, and cultural understanding as they do on calculations and design tools.

This book also speaks to the evolving expectations of the engineering profession. It aligns naturally with international accreditation developments, including the Washington and Sydney Accord graduate attribute, “Engineer and the World,” by preparing students to understand the broader impacts of their work and to act responsibly within global and local systems. The contribution it makes to advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals emerges through practice, rather than prescription.

Humanitarian Engineering: Fundamentals, Exercises, and Applications will be valuable to students, educators, and practitioners alike. It offers a clear invitation to rethink how engineering is taught and practised, and to place dignity, participation, and responsibility at the centre of engineering education.

Prof Saurabh Sinha, FIEEE

Executive Dean, Faculty of Engineering

University of Canterbury

Christchurch, New Zealand

January 2026

About the author

name: Professor Saurabh Sinha

institution: University of Canterbury

website: https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/about-uc/contact-us/staff-directory/saurabh-sinha

Dr Saurabh Sinha is a Professor and Executive Dean at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, where he leads the Faculty of Engineering and serves as part of the Senior Leadership Team. His work focuses on empowering future engineers and researchers while tackling global challenges and opportunities in engineering. He holds B.Eng., M.Eng., and Ph.D. degrees in Electronic Engineering from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, and is also an alumnus of the Wharton Advanced Management Program at the University of Pennsylvania, USA. An established researcher rated by South Africa’s National Research Foundation, he has authored or co-authored more than 140 peer-reviewed journal articles, books, and conference papers. With over two decades of experience across academia and industry, Saurabh spent more than 22 years at the University of Pretoria and the University of Johannesburg, advancing from academic roles to leadership positions, including institute director, executive dean, and deputy vice-chancellor. He is a Fellow of the IEEE, a recipient of a U.S. Fulbright grant, and has served as IEEE Board Director and Vice-President. Saurabh is also a Chartered Professional Engineer with Engineering New Zealand | Te Ao Rangahau.