The Vision for Civil Engineering in 2025

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) organized a gathering of thought leaders from diverse backgrounds and countries—civil engineers, engineers from other disciplines, architects, educators, and other leaders—to ask: What will the civil engineering world be like in 2025? What aspirational role will civil engineers play in that radically transformed world?

The answer professes a new role for the civil engineers of tomorrow, reflecting a new level of leadership and professionalism. Civil engineers would be entrusted by society to achieve a sustainable world and raise the global quality of life. To earn that confidence, civil engineers, as a body of professionals, would exhibit a mastery in five key areas:

• Planners, designers, constructors, and operators
• Stewards of the environment
• Innovators and integrators of technology
• Managers of risk
• Leaders in public policy

As the civil engineering profession moves towards the goals of Vision 2025, the make-up of the engineering team may change as well. The professional engineer of the future will be the clear leader of projects, integrate technology and resources, and spearhead the interface with the owner and the public—but there may be fewer professional engineers on individual project teams. With the ever increasing sophistication of engineering software, many of the routine engineering tasks in future projects will not require a professional engineer. That work can be performed well and economically by unlicensed individuals under the responsible charge of new engineer leaders—a strategic allocation of engineering graduates, degreed technologists, and technicians.