Can engineers fix the world?

What do you think when you see a machine?

• An example of technical progress that transforms energy, for better or for worse
• A useless object designed for today's consumer society
• A tangible illustration of human progress

In your opinion, the price of an object should be:

• A figure that represents the object's value in a given context
• An amount that reflects the energy and resources that have gone into producing the object
• A figure based on supply and demand

In your view, degrowth is:

• A stereotypical, but relevant concept
• Our only option for fixing the world
• An idea that is incompatible with the 21st century

In your opinion, the field of human science is:

• An important part of the engineering curriculum
• The only thing that really matters at the end of the day
• A field of science that isn't really a science

How would you describe a company?

• Individuals combining their efforts to achieve a common goal
• A simple money-making machine
• A good way of achieving progress

In your opinion, the idea of fixing the world:

• Is a major challenge that needs to be tackled as part of a collective effort
• Involves scrapping everything and starting again from scratch
• A vain and naive pursuit; you can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs

In your opinion, eco-design is:

• Hard to assess, because every activity uses resources
• A marketing concept invented by capitalists as an excuse to continue over-producing
• The ideal solution for maintaining our standard of living without destroying the environment

How would you describe an activity's carbon footprint?

• An important, but abstract value that is obtained by an often obscure calculation
• The only value that should be taken into account when calculating the price of a service or product
• Just one of the many compasses for finding our way in a world bound by constraints

In your view, ethics is:

• A set of rules that should be defined and applied by new generations of engineers
• Social and environmental values that were not available to yesterday's engineers
• A principle that applies to decision-makers, not engineers

You believe that environmental responsibility is:

• challenge that should not overshadow social and societal cohesion
• An objective that will remain out of reach unless radical changes are made to the business model
• One of the challenges facing today's world, and one that should not overshadow the other challenges