Engineering studies are filled with complicated formulas and abstract sketches, but the knowledge acquired with great effort is valuable. Two students from RWTH Aachen put dry theory into practice during their studies and do good in the process.
The day after tomorrow she'll be on the plane again. First leaves Germany behind, then Europe, flies over the vast desert and savannah landscapes of North Africa and finally sets course for Kigali. Will it feel familiar? After all, this is not the first time that Julia Bauer has traveled the 6,000 kilometers as the crow flies between her hometown of Aachen and the capital of Rwanda. The student was in Rwanda a year ago. Don't go on vacation - even if your travel preferences go in a similar direction. At that time, Julia - with clothes for several weeks and her engineering knowledge with her - led a bridge building seminar. At the technical university, the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), she taught Rwandan students the basics of building pedestrian bridges. What is sometimes so banal for people in urban centers that they are hung with symbolic castles is in short supply in the rural regions of developing countries. Schools, hospitals and markets are often kilometers away; Detours due to the many rivers - raging torrents in the rainy season that can no longer be managed with auxiliary structures made of tree trunks - make everyday life even more difficult. »Then you're on the road for hours. Many people there have never seen a bridge before,” says Julia. The curiosity and motivation of the students on site are correspondingly high. They plan and implement their own projects during the seminar. Julia and other volunteers from the Engineers Without Borders association support them. How do you get involved in volunteering for aid projects in Africa? After completing her bachelor's degree in industrial engineering at RWTH Aachen University, Julia traveled to many regions of Southeast Asia during a semester abroad in South Korea. »I was very impressed by how contented the people there are with what little they have. That's when I realized that I could make a huge difference with the knowledge I gained from my studies." Julia finally came to 'Engineers Without Borders' through a friend. For a good ten years, the aid organization has been providing technical support to secure basic infrastructural needs worldwide, such as access to water and energy supplies. The focus is also on cooperation with the local population. Of the 700 active members, almost a third are students. “There is particularly great interest among engineering scientists because we give them the opportunity to practically apply what they have learned,” says Volker Eiselein. He is responsible for press and public relations for Engineers Without Borders and studied computer engineering. Although the name primarily attracts civil engineers, students of all disciplines are welcome. The regional groups, which are represented in many university towns, offer a good opportunity to get an initial insight into the association's work. If you stick with it, you will be rewarded with experiences that you would never have in the classroom at home: »When we rebuilt the Vunga Bridge in northern Rwanda because the population found the vibrations of the rope bridge frightening when it was used heavily, we had three months without electricity and water Water lived with the local people. In the evenings you sit together with a banana beer and hear stories that you never forget." When Christoph Winkler - a mechanical engineer who now works in tunnel construction - talks about his experiences, you can vividly imagine what it was like for the local people and himself means setting up a heating water supply in southern India or scouting out potential road bridge construction projects in the Congo. Like Julia, Christoph is involved in the bridge and building construction competence group. The knowledge from his studies in Germany, says Christoph, is constantly put to the test here: “The challenge is to implement the technical knowledge on site under the simplest conditions and with the fewest resources. « Even if both of you are used to different things when it comes to organization, at some point you get used to it and become more relaxed yourself. When Julia sets off to Rwanda for seven weeks this time, it will be with the aim of taking another look at the bridge projects of the last few years. What went well, what went badly? What impact do the bridges have on people's lives? Julia will present the results in her master’s thesis. She is keeping an open mind as to where her career will take her afterwards. It is quite possible that bridges will play a role.
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Engineering studies are filled with complicated formulas and abstract sketches, but the knowledge acquired with great effort is valuable. Two students from RWTH Aachen put dry theory into practice during their studies and do good in the process. The day after tomorrow she'll be on the plane again. First leaves Germany behind, then Europe, flying over the vast desert and savannah landscapes of North Africa
