About the Coalition
Our Vision
Engineering a more sustainable, just and resilient future
Our Mission
Mobilizing an engineering-led coalition to make resilience and sustainability a cornerstone of every decision in the infrastructure lifecycle in every community around the globe.
Our Commitment
The International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure will identify and address the biggest barriers to action that have prevented us from working together for a sustainable, resilient and inclusive future.
While the engineering-inclusive organizations at the center of the coalition seek to bring the kind of practical, science-based and solutions-oriented perspective that engineers are generally known for, we recognize that engineering-inclusive organizations alone cannot solve the systemic problems that exist at the intersection of climate change, aging infrastructure, and underinvestment. A multidisciplinary, multi-sector, global coalition is needed to break down the silos that have contributed to our collective failure to adapt and mitigate.
Our Core Values
Action & Innovation
We are a coalition of doers. Members are not just great at identifying the problems of today and the future, but also taking an active role in solving them and innovating new solutions.
Leadership
We are an inclusive and diverse group of leaders unafraid to step outside our comfort zones and collaborate across sectors and geographies.
Inclusion & Partnership
We believe systemic infrastructure solutions will be achieved through inclusive, just and truly global cooperation and collaboration. We welcome knowledge and insight from individuals of all ages, from all backgrounds, including those working outside of the engineering community, and from every region around the world.
Education
We are a knowledge sharing organization. We believe that sharing what we and others have learned will only help us achieve our vision faster.
The Future
We know that our infrastructure must be engineered for future conditions and not just for today. We believe this requires the early and active engagement and involvement of youth as the engineers and leaders of the future.
The ICSI Pledge
At the end of 2019, global leaders came together to identify the biggest barriers to infrastructure climate adaptation and resilience and to understand how the engineering community could act as a catalyst for action. It culminated in a signed declaration to move forward through a ‘Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure.’
Photos by Jason Dixson Photography
Engineers in Action… Launching a Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure
The global population will face unprecedented challenges over the next 50 years, from rising seas to more frequent extreme weather events, all of which will happen against a backdrop of significant demographic changes and technology advances. These global trends are already posing well-documented challenges.
Practical solutions are needed in order to adapt our infrastructure, close the resilience gap, and breakdown barriers to action. While there has been some progress in developing technological approaches and favorable environmental, economic, and social policy to lessen the impacts of the changing climate, we need a larger scale commitment among all stakeholders, and especially engineers, to:
- Identify, prioritize and better understand the gaps and barriers for the planning, designing, building, maintaining and operating of sustainable and resilient infrastructure now and in the future;
- Cultivate and unlock the full potential of untapped partnerships and funding investments designed to reduce the impacts of extreme weather events, create sustainable and resilient infrastructure, and effect social change; and,
- Understand and identify practical plans of action and resources for implementing strategies that influence realistic short-term goals and, also have measure, long-term effects.
We the undersigned commit to unite forces and bring our relevant expertise and resources to a Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure.
Why we need to mobilize the engineering community
Engineers have a crucial role to play in responding to the climate crisis
They hold the technical expertise needed to drive solutions and implement action.
Engineers are widely trusted by the public
The engineering community is well positioned to make an impact beyond their own industry, to influence policy and planning, and to become leaders on climate action.
Engineering challenges are disproportionately spread across the globe
Infrastructure needs are rising, particularly in regions with growing urbanization, and in places where climate impacts are putting pressure on existing infrastructure.