Twentieth International Conference on Technology, Knowledge, and Society

Abstract

As the engineered and built environment continues to play an ever larger role in our world and undergirds nearly every aspect of human life, it is important that engineered systems be designed and built in ethical and equitable ways. Yet most engineers, especially those designing complex infrastructures, are seldom taught how to engage with publics and design in socially engaged ways. Here, we describe our approaches for teaching socially engaged design of nuclear energy technologies as part of the freshman design course at our home institution. We did so by integrating XR technologies into our course to (1) facilitate student learning about nuclear engineering technologies and the fundamental scientific and engineering principles underpinning their design; (2) offer students opportunities for presenting complex information to and receiving input from peers and members of the public and; (3) incorporate this input into technology and facility design decisions, thus carrying out a design-build-test (DBT) cycle in XR environments. Two primary innovations take shape in this project: Engaging in the DBT process in XR prepares students to be critical users and designers of emergent technologies. These skills will be particularly valuable as XR becomes more common in the global workplace.The second innovation, using XR to facilitate community engagement in the energy technology design process may serve as a model that could be applied widely in the US and beyond to help foster trust between communities and energy experts and amplify minoritized voices often unheard in the energy technology design and clean energy transition conversations.