Engineer
When you hear the phrase, "civil engineer," what comes to mind? A blue-suited professional in a glass-walled office examining blueprints for a new airport terminal? [This is] an accurate picture of what civil engineers do. But spend a day with Chris Swan, and you'll discover that a civil engineer can also be a college senior teaching kids in a bilingual third-grade class in Somerville, Massachusetts, about water conservation and the basics of a sustainable life.
Chris Swan calls them "citizen engineers." They're part of a growing movement of working professionals dedicated to solving some of the greatest challenges of our time - the environment, health care, economic development.
Chris grew up in Buda, Texas, part of the town's small African-American community. Always a sharp student, Chris gradated seventh in his Hayes High School class and was invited to attend the University of Texas (UT). After becoming the first member of his family to graduate from college - he earned an engineering degree - Chris stayed at UT for graduate school. Later Chris moved to Boston where he joined the staff at the engineering firm GZA Geoenvironemntal. Chris quickly became passionate about his work, honing his skills on projects like foundation engineering and the clean-up of hazardous wastes.
After obtaining a doctorate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Chris shifted into a career he had dreamed about since he was a child - teaching others about his passion for geoengineering. He's now an associate professor at Tufts University, sharing his expertise with students and inspiring others to engage in "citizen engineering."
He also works with Engineers Without Borders, traveling around the world with students to show them first hand the realities of civil engineering in developing countries. On the trips, students learn, among other things, that resources can't always be ordered -- instead, they have to be scavenged from whatever local resources are available.
