INSTRUCTORS:
Michael Mucha, P.E., F.ASCE, ENV-SP
Laurel Sukup, ENV-SP

Purpose and Background

This course is sponsored by the ASCE Committee on Sustainability, who has adopted Human Infrastructure as priority to help advance ASCE's Strategic Priority of Sustainability.

Civil Engineers professional life centers on the built environment.  That building bigger and building more is better. But as resources become more scarce, as there are more and more physical constraints, and the cost of building big cannot be supported, engineers must look to new pathways to build smarter, instead of just bigger.

Civil engineering is a people serving profession, yet few engineers have gained the skills to engage communities in effective ways. This seminar will focus on the Human Infrastructure that is required to make projects successful.  It is collaboration with regulators, citizens and clients to look at problems differently, and find solutions that deliver better value. 

The seminar will offer several practical tools to help engineers navigate the complexities and difficulties of overcoming conflict and building trusting relationships that will produce a better quality project. These tools will be based on using a sustainability lens. With those tools, attendees will then develop their own personal strategy to overcome a current challenge.  As the course proceeds, attendees will have a chance to share elements of their strategy with classmates to receive peer feedback.  By the end of the seminar, they will not only have many tools they can use immediately in all aspects of their job, but will also have a peer reviewed strategy that they can use to start solve a difficult problem when they get back to the office.

Learning Outcomes

• Learn how to facilitate discussions with others on how to view a situation from a sustainability lens using the Sustainable Action Map.
• Learn how to build productive working relationships using the Trust Formula
• Learn how to develop strategy to address an opportunity or overcome a major challenge
• Learn how to make the business case for sustainability with a skeptical audience.

Benefits for Participants

• Leave with a peer reviewed leadership strategy sketch that outlines how to overcome a current sustainability challenge
• Learn practical tools to build support for sustainability with your boss, employees, regulators and the public
• Learn how to build support for sustainability with regulators, owners, clients and the public
• Learn how to build trusting relationships that are productive and last
• Learn how to get difficult situations unstuck and moving forward
• Learn how to achieve restorative Envision credits in all five categories

Summary Outline

DAY 1 - Time: 1:00 - 5:00 p.m.           

Class Introductions

• What do you want to get out of this seminar?
• Course overview:  What to expect.
• Write down your project statement/issue
• Share project statements with classmates

Making the Case for Human Infrastructure

• Funnel: White Board Exercise with Class
• Reading Municipal Trash Case Study
• Moore's Strategic Triangle
• Trust Formula
• Group discussion and exercise “where is your trust/triangle pressure point with your project?

DAY 2 - Time: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. 

Working with Regulators

• PCA and the State of Wisconsin Case Study
• Group Discussion:  Apply the tools so far to this case study.

Vision

• The importance of vision
• Backcasting
• Group Process: Participants write vision statements and share with class.

Sustainable Action Map

• City of Olympia climate Change Case study
• Learn the Sustainable Action Map
• SAM Group Process to approach a tough problem.         

Strategy Sketch Development and Group Feedback

• What is a strategy sketch?
• How do you apply your issue to the sketch.
• Work time to prepare the sketch in small groups.

DAY 3  - Time:  8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.          

Presentation of Strategy Sketches

• Get into small groups, share strategy sketches and get feedback
• Select most promising strategy sketch in each group
• Present to large group, get group feedback.

Personal Leadership: How to manage change

• How to deal with resistance.
• Difference between management and leadership
• How to keep yourself centered during difficult times.

Dewitt Jones video