Project Symposium

Engineers Going Global hosted its biannual Project Symposium on Monday, December 4th in Newcomb Hall at the University of Virginia. The Project Symposium is the longest tradition of EGG and is a celebration of the work that their members have accomplished over the course of the semester.

The project teams that presented at today’s symposium were EcoVillage Garden, Dysphagia Straw, EcoVillage Playground, Village of Veterans, RANA Kit, and Tuff Armenia. Many esteemed faculty and staff of the University were in attendance as the project teams presented their projects and the future goals they hope to achieve.

In addition to all of the project presentations, the EGG Executive Board made their own presentation talking about the re-scoping process they are undergoing. Over the past five years, the number of projects within EGG has decreased from 14 to 7 and the number of members has decreased by 38%. The Exec team has recognized the problems and, unlike unsuccessful past trials to fix the symptoms, they are attempting to change the root of the problem. They have identified this to be that there is not enough attention given to project teams and past Exec teams have not been as transparent. The new system will aim to recruit and/or start more projects and give more care and attention to these projects. Projects will be recruited from all across the University, as the Exec team has recognized that diversity in our project teams is one of the most important qualities of their organization. This includes projects from the Architecture school, Global Development Studies and the Curry School, just to mention a few. All of the events planned by the Exec team will in some way directly benefit the project teams, primarily through the implementation of workshops. Project leaders will gather twice a month at the Project Leader Meetings (PLM’s) and collaboration amongst project teams will be emphasized. EGG’s most important resource is their project teams, and the organization’s new look will benefit these teams and lead them to future success. If you were unable to attend the event, the summary slides can be found below.