National Academy of Engineers launches website to get engineering message out

Despite the impact of engineering on our daily lives, most Americans do not understand what engineers do and are largely unaware of the opportunities available through an engineering education, according to the National Academy of Engineers (NAE). This is a grave problem for our nation. NAE president Chuck Vest said, "Our economy, national security, and quality of life depend on engineers, so it is disturbing to see how few Americans, particularly young people, understand the importance and excitement of engineering." To combat this lack of understanding, the NAE has created a new website, "Changing the Conversation," to transform the way people talk about and perceive the engineering profession. (www.engineeringmessages.org) Launched in February as a national call to action, the site is an online resource and "toolkit" for use by the engineering community, educators and other stakeholders. It features messages developed by a variety of firms, corporations and organizations to recast engineering as inherently creative and concerned with human welfare, and to achieve the broader goal of increasing the quality, quantity and diversity of our nation's engineering workforce. The 2009 image ad campaign created by the American Council of Engineering Companies of New York (ACEC New York) is an example of the type of work included on the site. The Vision campaign combines a compelling image of a young person in a hard hat gazing through binoculars that reflect back images of an idealized built environment and a satellite view of the earth with the headline, "Your Vision Can Change the World." The copy reinforces the message that engineering requires creativity, imagination and vision, and provides examples of the kinds of cutting edge project engineers are involved in, such as green buildings and state-of-the-art bridge design. Visit the NAE's "Changing the Conversation" site for more ideas on how to promote a more positive and accurate image of engineering and the contributions that engineers make to society.