2009 NATIONAL DANIEL W. MEAD STUDENT CONTEST
Established in 1939 in honor of the 67th President of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the contest provides an opportunity for alert young civil engineers to further their professional development and gain national attention.
AWARD: Up to five winners will receive cash prizes (1st place $1000, 2nd place $800, 3rd place $600, 4th place $400, 5th place $200).
TOPIC: "Sustainability and Civil Engineering " 
The following can be used to stimulate, but should in no way limit, the discussion:
Canon 1 of the ASCE Code of Ethics states: “Engineers shall hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public and shall strive to comply with the principles of sustainable development in the performance of their professional duties.” The code goes on in subparagraph f of Canon 1: “Engineers should be committed to improving the environment by adherence to the principles of sustainable development so as to enhance the quality of life of the general public.” The Code of Ethics presents the following definition: “Sustainable Development is the challenge of meeting human needs for natural resources, industrial products, energy, food, transportation, shelter, and effective waste management while conserving and protecting environmental quality and the natural resource base essential for future development.” There are other published definitions of terms related to sustainability, and authors should be clear as to what definition they are basing their discussion on. This definition and its inclusion in the ASCE Code of Ethics date from 1996.
Some questions or issues to consider are:
- Is the education you are being provided sufficient for you to work as a civil engineer – are you being taught the “principles of sustainable development” as part of your academic major? If not, is this ethical?
- What other skills, knowledge base, and/or appreciation for other disciplines does a civil engineer need to fully understand sustainability? Can you practice ethically without these skills?
- Under what circumstances, if any, is practice in violation of the principles of sustainable development ethical?
- When, if ever, is practice in accordance with the principles of sustainability unethical?
- Are the development projects, in the US and/or beyond our borders, being undertaken by US governmental agencies conducted in an ethical fashion given the principles of sustainability?
- Is the American life style ethical given the principles of sustainability? As a civil engineer should you strive to lead a more sustainable life style given the published code of conduct of your profession? At what point could the American life style become ethical and sustainable? Is this attainable?
RULES: Papers are not to exceed 2,000 words in length, must be written by only one person, and should not have appeared in any publications other than in school or chapter publications. Reference citations of the papers should conform to the official ASCE Authors' Guide to Journals and Practice Periodicals, which can be found on the ASCE Publications web site http://www.pubs.asce.org/authors/index.html. Entries for the contest shall be limited to one paper from each Student Chapter and must be submitted through the Faculty Advisor. Authors must be undergraduate students and both ASCE Student Chapter members and ASCE Society student members in good standing at the time of submission to be considered. Entries should include a cover letter from the Faculty Advisor of the Chapter, stating the name, ASCE ID number, mailing address, phone, and e-mail of the paper's author. Send entries to: ASCE Student Services, Student Mead Paper Contest, 1801 Alexander Bell Drive, Reston, VA 20191-4400. Entries must be received by March 1, 2009.
SELECTION: Selection will be made by the ASCE National Committee on Student Activities and winners will be announced in May 2009. If insufficient qualified essays are received, fewer than five awards may be presented.
Questions should be directed to Student Services at student@asce.org.
