The world is changing. Due to urbanisation most of the rapidly growing world population lives in or around cities. The need for water and other resources increases, while climate change asks for engineering solutions to keep cities liveable.
The task of environmental engineers is to develop solutions to cope with the effects of environmental change; to protect citizens against environmental hazards such as air, soil and water pollution, heatwaves, floods and droughts, and to safeguard water supply and sanitation. The challenge for humanity is to ensure a sustainable and healthy urban and natural environment, based on the principles of a circular economy.
Coping with this challenge requires a new kind of engineers: engineers focusing on the interaction between humans and their living environment and protecting the public from the risk of environmental hazards.