Sustainable Development – Role of Engineering Managers and

Technologists

YP Chawla – Hd. Energy Sector Apollo Tyres

An Abstract:

Vedas -a bank of knowledge, with hymns collected in between 1000 and 500 BC
describe the dynamics of five elements (paunch tatwa): Earth, Sky, Wind, Water, and
Fire (Sun). Vedas convey sun being the nourisher, earth the Goddess -feeding
everyone., Water providing remedies, Air a source of living, Sky an universal umbrella
All the entities in the universe are dependent upon these five elements. In the
Atharvaveda, the earth is described in one hymn of 63 verses. This famous hymn
called as Bhumisukta or Prithivisukta indicates the environmental consciousness of
Vedic seers. Modern society, proud of its technological advancements, is reluctantly
accepting the service of nature, with Ecological Economics - a new emerging trans-
disciplinary science, recognizing the service of nature for the sustainability of human
being vis-à-vis all Biotic and Abiotic components. Modern environmentalists discuss
sound or noise pollution. Yajurveda depicts a relation between ETHER ‘AKASHA’ and
sound, giving an interesting advice to the mankind of not to destroy anything of the sky
and not to pollute the sky avoiding destruction of anything of Antariksha. We need to
blend the Technology with our earlier mythological beliefs. The unity in diversity is the
message of Vedic physical and metaphysical
sciences.

India, like any other country, has the self-determination and sovereignty, to decide on
the Economic Policies. Once these Policies are framed, the Role of Technocrats,
Engineering Managers, Industry, and Business & Society Starts. 21st century started
with a Key aim of “Sustainable Development," embraced by the international
community as back as 1992. Then in 2007 Climate Change became the buzzword and
now in 2010 the Biodiversity - another key environmental concern has emerged
covering biodiversity -the diversity of species, variety of ecosystems, and variability of
genes , which now occupies a similar position in the public debate as Climate Change
did in 2007.

Sustainable Development (SD) means using resources no faster than they can
regenerate themselves and releasing Pollutants to no greater extent than Natural
Resources can assimilate them and also covers Sustainable Consumption involving
not merely technological progress, but also cultural patterns of individual behavior and
values of the society at large. The SD focuses around three pillars with a Vision of
2050 & setting a new agenda for business; i) Green Economy :ii) a transformation to
address climate change and multiple crises; and iii)Water - the new challenge for the
21st century.

Industry is one of the biggest Contributors to GDP; the objective of SD’s framework is
in shaping the production and consumption & at the same time encouraging
Technological Innovation in Industry for today’s knowledge based Society, achieving
environmental compatibility in lifestyles and economies thus ultimately the Business.
Sustainability thus has a strategic aim of optimizing the interactions between nature,
society, and the economy, in accordance with the ecological criteria, combining the
political stability, sound macroeconomic policies, and social cohesion.
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The Challenge to the Role of a Technologist, Engineering Manager is to develop
Technology or a Product that is required for Sustainable Development, with an aim on
promoting Inclusive Growth through its Business Process.

Tags: Sustainable. Inclusive Growth, Biodiversity, Technologist, Engineering Manager

The Sustainable Development Indicators have started playing its role & getting
reflected in Corporate Decision-making  by the use of Renewable Natural
Resources and changing technological Operations to reduce such use - even in the
industries not highly regulated with not having much direct impact on biodiversity. In
fact, now the Industry is considering Biodiversity as an opportunity rather than a
challenge or a threat.

As a country India could reduce the share of its population living under the extreme
poverty line, and is now broadening its approach towards SD, promoting inclusive
growth by bringing in National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and like
schemes.

Global change is creating enormous challenges for the humanity. The world's
population is expected to grow from nearly 6 billion today to 8.5 billion by the year
2025. Global energy requirements will continue to increase. India is experiencing a
rapid Economic Growth that will also add to modern society's environmental problems,
including air and water pollution and waste problems, to wider areas of the World –a
Global Village of today. India has bigger challenge to meet the sanitation issues of a
vast population .The industrialized world will have to accept special responsibility-not
only because of their past ecological sins, but also because of level of their present
technological know-how as well as Financial Resources.

It is thus a Technologist irrespective of the Country that takes an important role in the
SD, leading to Inclusive Growth and effect on Biodiversity.
Strategies and Alignments for competing in the Future have changed for the Industry
based on Environment friendly technologies.
Role Profile of Technologist & the Engineer / Engineer Manager en-compasses a very
wide field. A restricted role has been depicted here for giving a flavour of the Role of
Technologist and Engineers. A few of the areas are:
Energy use.
• Improve access to all, a reliable, affordable, economically viable, socially
acceptable and environmentally sound energy services , recognize that energy
services have positive impacts on poverty eradication and the improvement of
standards of living thus taking care of Integrated Growth
• Develop and disseminate alternative energy technologies with the aim of giving
a greater share of the energy mix to renewable energy and, with a sense of
urgency, substantially increase the global share of renewable energy sources
for SD
• Diversify energy supply by developing advanced, cleaner, more efficient and
cost-effective energy / Energy conservation technologies & Accelerate the
development, for dissemination and deployment
• Combine a range of energy technologies, including advanced and cleaner fossil
fuel technologies, to meet the growing need for energy services
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This will help reduce emissions of climate-damaging greenhouse gases. Simply to
stabilize atmospheric greenhouse-gas concentrations achieving this goal involves
focusing on improved thermal insulation in buildings, on the use of heat/power
cogeneration, and on efficient support for the use of renewable energies.

Close Substance Cycles. Micro-systems and Control technologies are providing new
opportunities to design environmentally friendly production processes.

Water: Integrated Environmental Technologies in Water Filtering and Wastewater-

treatment have helped enhanced air and water quality with optimal use of Energy &
Materials with lesser wastes. This requires a necessary framework with the Closed
Substance Cycle and Waste Management Act &Instruments like eco-audits, tohelp
identify the saving potentials from environmental protection investments, also promote
development of such "clean" technologies.

Environmentally Compatible Mobility Environmentally

compatible traffic concepts are natural-gas engines,
electric cars, hydrogen engines, and fuel-cell engines can
all play a role in eliminating motor-vehicle emissions.
Tele-matics can enable traffic to
move more efficiently. Information
and communication technologies
can eliminate the need for physical
transports in some areas, and computerized logistics in goods
transports can reduce total transport distances.

Bio-Technology is expected to bring important

advances in medical diagnosis and therapy, in solving
food problems, in energy saving, in environmentally
compatible industrial and agricultural production, and in
specially targeted environmental protection projects.
Genetically altered microorganisms can break down a
wide range of pollutants by being used, for example, in
bio-filters and
wastewater-treatment
facilities, and in the
clean-up of polluted
sites. Genetically modified organisms can also alleviate
environmental burdens by reducing the need for
pesticides, fertilizers, and medications.

Technologists, Engineers & Policy Makers alike face

the challenge of recognizing interrelationships and
interactions between Ecological, Economic, and Social
factors and taking account of these factors when
seeking solution strategies. To meet this challenge,
decision-makers require interdisciplinary techno-
approaches and strategies that cut across various sectors. They have to develop new
environment-friendly technologies that facilitate low carbon growth, and for the public
to become aware of such technologies that can contribute towards effective
adaptation to climate risks and provide a momentum to the solution-finding process for
climate change.
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 Sustainable Development
Areas (This paper covers SD
partially, being one of the
Papers of the Seminar on the
Vast Subject with great depth). SD provides Challenges, transformation and
opportunities for the business houses. But the growing demand resources like fossil
fuels, water, and so on, with high
population growth, could lead to
resource insecurity and an
ecosystem collapse. There is a
need to develop pathways that
can quantify market potential and

exploit the available opportunities.

Social & Economic This paper mainly focuses on limited areas of
Energy, Water, Land, Climate Change.
• Industry • Demographics
• Poverty • Health
• SCP:- Sustainable Consumption & • Human Settlements
Production Patterns
• Sustainable Tourism
• Trade
Natural Resources Management
• Agriculture • Biodiversity • Oceans & • Atmosphere • Energy
• Desertification & • Forests Seas • Climate Change • Transport
Drought • Land • Sanitation • Disaster
• Rural • Mountains • Water/ Reduction &
Development Freshwater Management
• Chemicals
• Toxic Chemicals
• Waste -Hazardous / Waste (Radioactive
• Waste -Solid

Regional Dimensions on Sustainable development of Agriculture and Rural

Development (SARD), it may be noted that, by the year 2025, 83 per cent of the
expected global population of 8.5 billion will be living in developing countries & Indian
population is growing faster than its GDP & making much of Global Population
increase and the capacity of available resources and technologies to satisfy the
demands of this growing population for food and other agricultural commodities
remains uncertain. Agriculture Technologists and Engineers has the challenge to meet
increasing production on land already in use and by avoiding further encroachment on
land that is only marginally suitable for cultivation.

Technologists & Engineers in Industry play a critical role in innovations and R & D -
crucial for the economic and Social Development, & Inclusive Growth of any country,
as well as in the development, diffusion and transfer of environmentally sound

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technologies and management techniques, which constitute a key element of SD,
keeping our Biodiversity intact.

There is a mutually reinforcing relationship between Social and industrial

development, and industrialization has the potential to promote, directly and indirectly,
a variety of social objectives such as employment creation, poverty eradication,
gender equality, labour standards, and greater access to education and health care. In
this regard, the overriding policy challenge is to promote the positive impacts while
limiting or eliminating the negative impacts of industrial activities on social
development.

Industry: More than half of world's most innovative

companies are in Asia, Europe
There was a time when most of the top innovative
companies were Americans, but that U.S. dominance no longer exists
today. According to a survey done by James Andrew, Senior Partner and
Head of the global innovation practice at Boston Consulting Group, more
than half of the companies in this year's most innovative companies list
came from Asia and Europe.

Report published in Bloomberg Business Week, 80 percent of the respondents were

opine that to benefit from the economic recovery, innovation will be a key part of their
strategy. While 72 percent of the companies consider innovation as a "top three"
strategic priority, 61 percent of them are planning to increase their investment on
innovation. Top 50 innovative companies included, 15 Asian companies found their
place, out of which, four were there in the top 10 companies.

The survey showed that in the year 2007 Tata Group (17th) established the Tata
Group Innovation Forum, a panel of the company's senior executives and selected
CEOs of its independently run businesses. The purpose behind setting up the panel
was to inspire its employees to be more innovative.

A similar move came from Honda Motor (26th), when it promoted its former head of
research and development to the CEO spot last year. Samsung Electronics also took
a vital step toward innovation by restating innovation's priority in Vision
2020.

Indian capable Technocrats are behind Innovations, with the agenda set
by the companies. Indian Corporate is required to come forward to convert
the Indian Technocrat’s capability to an asset to help India in SD & Inclusive
Growth, helping Indian Home maker to a decision maker of intelligently
choosing their Legislative Member to carry them forward.

Accelerating Sustainable Development to reach the have nots – The key

challenges:
- Role of Technologists, Engineers in the new development paradigm.
- Building institutions for effective climate governance.
- From sustainable livelihoods to sustainable development.
- Sustaining Business in a climate constrained world.
- In pursuit of sustainable development: the place for ethics, equity, and social justice.

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- Mitigating emissions for climate stabilization: Policies, Consumption, and Lifestyles.
- Role of India as emerging economy in fostering climate cooperation.

Conclude: Stakeholders to act:

Political Need for government action to reduce negative subsidies, introduce strong
legislations and offer incentives
Government policies are required to be designed for maximizing the positive impact
of Industrial activities on Economic, Social Development & on inclusive Growth,
minimizing the negative impact on the environment by Manufacturing, Production and
Consumption. To this end, Government is required review the regulatory policies and
systems of economic incentives and disincentives and undertakes other actions such
as capacity-building, environmental data collection for enforcement to support the
environmental protection efforts of industry and civil society. Government should
encourage the wider dispersion and implementation of industry’s voluntary initiatives
and agreements and sharing of best practices.

Technological (Technologists & Engineering Managers)

Improving efficiency by investing in R&D and emphasis on
green technologies that can emphasize the importance & be a
game changers in the field of energy efficiency.
Similarly the consumption of water in several industries being
higher, the industries should move towards water-use efficiency,
use of innovative technologies, and taking appropriate
measures for water conservation engaging different
stakeholders such as societies, NGOs, government, and
industries in a dialogue for efficient water management which is vital for sustainable
water use.

Economic & Business Need for internalizing cost, reducing externalities, risk-sharing
amongst various stakeholders.

Social Increasing public awareness via multimedia, making efforts to alter

consumption patterns and lifestyles, empowering women and youth.
Society Consumption pattern is required to be tailored to leave a smaller footprint,
travelling for discussions vs. Video / Tele-conferencing. Setting up Small interventions
that can reduce energy consumption in a big way

And, finally there is a for an integration of these efforts with a focus on

convergence of development, environment, economics & a
need for ethically, equitably
and environmental responsible
policies to promote a new
paradigm in development

Initiatives to provide basic

necessities in a sustainable
manner to all so as to also enable people to take their
destiny into their own hands & be decision makers rather
than only Home makers, whereby they do not need to
depend on others for the supply of electricity, water. And
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correct the world of distorted priorities. . The current trends observed worldwide in
unsustainable use of natural resources and the widespread damage and degradation
of fragile ecosystems are of serious concern. Yet, there are in evidence many
successful examples at the level of sub-regions, states and provinces, towns, cities
and villages where local communities have created solutions and set in motion
initiatives, which provide hope and examples worthy of emulation. Why is it then that,
while the world has found in several cases with such inspiring models of
Sustainable Development & Inclusive Growth , globally (more so in India )there
remains a wall of resistance and a huge volume of inertia that limits the
acceptance of good solutions?
Fallout:

References:
• Conclave of Thought Leaders: The Future of Sustainable Development
New York 11-12 May 2009 ; DSDS2010 5-7 Feb 2010
• Rigveda; Yajurveda; Samaveda; Atharvaveda & Cartoons
About the Author:
Y P Chawla ; Hd. Of Energy Sector Apollo Tyres
BE Tech. & MBA (Fin), PGDPM & PGDMM from Delhi University. Export Mgmt. from Oxford. Over 4
decades of Experience in diversified sectors covering Energy including Solar & other Renewable Energy,
(Ex. BHEL), Water Sector, Agriculture, Infrastructure.

Widely travelled in India & abroad including some Foreign Postings.

National Jt. Secretary of IIPE Contact: ypchawla@gmail.com ; yp.chawla@apollotyres.com 98107-08707

Written Papers on diversified subjects- (available on the web)

Energy Sector – Conventional, Renewable, opportunities in Climate Control,
India’s Sustainable Green Growth of Rural Sector thru Renewables
Zero Breakdown Maintenance in Steel Sector. Waste Management in Steel Plants
Approach to Zero Breakdown – a Multi Management aspects challenge
Iron Ore Beneficiation; Waste Management; Irrigation Sector; Water Sector
Maintenance Practices in Global Economic Meltdown
Coal Quality – a New Paradigm
Renewable Energy for Inclusive Growth – Role of NGOs …….etc.