I found this article in a civil engineering news consolidator that I receive. Sustainability for me ultimately boils down to risk. You can pay now or accept consequences and pay later. I do not think we need new nomenclature. We need to act like engineers. What do others think?
https://www.smartbrief.com/original/dont-say-climate-change
Civil engineers need new nomenclature, says Maria Lehman, executive advisor for US Infrastructure at GHD, interim executive director and past president of the American Society of Civil Engineers, and a member of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council.
"ASCE has been talking for years now about making infrastructure resilient against climate change and more destructive forces," Lehman said recently in an interview with SmartBrief, adding that needs to change as it can distract from meaningful collaboration.
"Sustainable has always meant a lot of different things to different people. So, you don't want to scare people off. What you want to do is build things that make sense for the future and that are reasonable investments," she said.
Maria Lehman
Lehman recommends that engineers:
- Exchange the term "climate change" for "man-made and environmental stressors."
- Instead of "resilient", use "durable."
- Instead of "sustainable", see if "a good investment" fits.
"That's the language, the vernacular that I'm using at this point. You don't want someone to not hear it or read it because you're saying climate change."
….the article goes on
#SustainableInfrastructure------------------------------
Mitch Winkler P.E.(inactive), M.ASCE
Houston, TX
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