Engineers Without Borders New Zealand (EWBNZ) has recently reached a stage in its organisational growth where a new strategy is needed to ensure its future engineering development initiatives are more consistent with its guiding philosophy of delivering sustainable long term development projects. A quantitative and qualitative analysis of the perceptions of the committee tasked with delivering projects revealed a preference for a strategy which enabled ‘placement’ type projects. To develop this strategy a qualitative analysis was conducted which focused on ascertaining what strategies and organisational structures are employed by comparable EWB organisations to deliver development projects. This process revealed EWB Australia to have a placement project process model which was deemed as the most acceptable to replicate. An implementation strategy and supporting set of recommendations were provided for this new placement project strategy. The most significant recommendation given to support this new strategy was to concentrate EWBNZ’s resources by prioritising projects in only two of the four countries EWBNZ currently operates. The countries deemed a strategic priority were Samoa and Tonga.

<p>Engineering graduates are called on by society to work with others to address wicked problems which incorporate a wide range of socio-technical considerations. One promising approach to more wholistically prepare students for the demands of engineering-related work and positively contributing as citizens is community-engaged learning. To help this pedagogy more closely meet its full potential, this study used the context of Engineers Without Borders USA (EWB-USA), as viewed through the lens of its alums in professional practice. It also explored individuals’ differentiated outcomes produced by the many types of variation inherent in the EWB-USA model. The goal of the project was to inform best practices for how community-engaged engineering programs can be implemented to support students’ professional preparation. This study took a QUAN QUAL explanatory sequential mixed-methods approach. The survey instrument (<em>n</em> = 268) led to non-parametric tests for group comparisons which were conducted on scores generated through exploratory factor analysis. Inductive thematic analysis was then used on the semi-structured interview transcripts (<em>n</em> = 29). EWB-USA was shown to support the transition between schooling and work through authentic experiential learning, which incorporated inherently-complex projects truly intended for implementation to meaningfully benefit end-users and engaging with a wide range of diverse stakeholders. It especially bolstered the development of competencies in project management, design and project processes, communication, diverse teaming, contextualization, addressing challenges and new situations, and functioning as a connected element of larger complex socio-technical systems. These gains were reflected in the alums’ perceived advantage in career outcomes, demonstrating their long-lasting transferability to professional practice. The results of this study also showed that while limited variations were found based on participant demographics, differences in personal experience within EWB-USA had a greater effect on outcomes. The differences found based on demographic groupings consisted of women reporting greater benefits to their confidence and sense of community. Impactful individual experience differences identified included length of time involved with EWB-USA, mentor engagement, leadership opportunities, repeating phases on different projects, seeing a project from start-to-finish, and number of trips taken to the community partner site. Across the competencies developed from the program, alums often reported perceiving greater benefits from their EWB-USA experiences once they had an opportunity to apply their learnings in professional practice.</p>

In recent decades numerous nonprofit organizations (NPOs) are undergoing the process of professionalization characterized by increased attention to efficiency, accountability, and the adoption of “business-like” tools and practices. At the same time, the majority of NPOs rely on volunteer labor. Most nonprofit scholars focus on traditional volunteering in which one volunteers doing something other than their professional work. These studies see volunteerism and professionalism as two completely separate systems. Meanwhile, the subset of skills-based volunteers, i.e., volunteers who provide professionally-related skills or services in nonprofit settings is understudied and their views of NPOs' professionalization are generally unknown. The present thesis aims to help fill this gap by exploring how skills-based volunteers perceive their roles and increasing the professionalization of nonprofit organizations. The study is guided by two research questions: (1) how do skills-based volunteers react to the rise of NPOs' professionalization? and (2) how do they navigate possible tensions between professionalism and volunteerism? The study is an ethnographic case study of skills-based volunteers at Engineers WithoutBorders Sweden. The data is collected through 14 semi-structured interviews with working and retired volunteers complemented by my participatory observations as a part-time employee at the organization. To analyze and interpret the study findings, the thesis employs a boundary work framework. The empirical findings indicate that, contrary to traditional volunteers, skills-based volunteers react to NPOs’ professionalization positively. The professionalization helps them to integrate their roles as volunteers and professionals, thus, facilitating boundary blurring. At the same time, working and retired skills-based volunteers perceive student volunteers as a barrier to professionalization, consequently, emphasizing differences in competencies and reliability between themself and students and performing demarcation work.

Only 10 % of the rural population in Sub-Saharan Africa has access to electricity. At the same time the Sub-Saharan countries are close to the equator and get many sun hours a day, leading to a huge potential for solar energy. This report aims to compare different PV system components for use in Sub-Saharan Africa to facilitate EWB for their work in electrification projects in the areas. The PV system will be compared with the following factors: economic, adoptability, scalability, environmental impact and efficiency, weighed in that order. A case simulation was made for a village around Nairobi were 20 households would be supplied with solar power. Both Polycrystalline silicon cells and thin filmed CIGS were simulated were the Poly c-Si cell was both the cost-efficient and scalable choice. Poly c-Si cells was also concluded to be advantageous of the crystalline cells by the chosen factors. Pb-acid batteries are best suited for off grid PV systems in rural areas. Different types of Pb-acid batteries can be used depending on the area’s typology. Off grid solar powered microgrids could be the solutions for an increased socioeconomic wellbeing for communities in rural areas. / Endast 10% av lantbygdens befolkning i Subsahariska Afrika har tillgång till elektricitet. Samtidigt ligger de Subsahariska länderna nära ekvatorn och får många soltimmar per dygn, vilket leder till en stor potential för solenergi. Den här rapporten syftar till att jämföra olika solcellssystems komponenter för användning i östra Afrika för att främja Ingenjörer Utan Gränsers arbete inom elektrifierings projekt i området. Jämförelsen kommer utföras med följande faktorer, ekonomi, anpassningsförmåga, skalning, miljöpåverkan och effektivitet, viktat i den ordningen. En simulation gjordes för en by i området av Nairobi där 20 hushåll skulle få tillgång till solenergi. Både Poly kristallina celler och tunnfilm CIGS simulerades där Poly kristallina celler var både kostnadseffektivast samt det plats effektivaste valet. Polykristallina celler var även konkluderades vara det fördelaktiga valet av de kristallina cellerna utefter de valda faktorerna. Bly-syra batterier var bäst lämpade för själv stående solcellssystem på landsbygden. Olika typer av bly-syra batterier kan användas beroende på områdets typologi. Fristående solcellssystem kan vara en lösning till ett ökat socioekonomisk välmående för samhällen på landsbygden.