Engineering the Castles and Cathedrals of England and Wales

Using STEP funds, I was able to participate in Engineering the Castles and Cathedrals of England and Wales. Along with twenty other students, primarily engineers, I completed a research project focused on my assigned site — York Minster — during class on campus at Ohio State, and presented with my partner an overview of the historical and social significance of the structure and its construction and design. Once in country, each group presented at their assigned location, providing further details and leading tours of each site to demonstrate in person the importance of each location in its own context.

Before the program, I treated foreign politics and history as irrelevant and distant, unable to appreciate the meaning of global events so far in the past and its extension to current global society. While in England and Wales, through both student presentations and interactions with local citizens, my eyes were opened to the lasting importance of such geographically and chronologically distant events. During a tour of Bangor University, our leader presented a lecture regarding all things Wales, including history, culture, and even the traditional Welsh language. Having learned about the English conquest of the smaller country by King Edward I during class on campus, observing the point of view of the conquered Welsh people, who still hold their individuality as a nation in high regard, enabled me to develop understanding of the importance of perspective.

Additionally, this awareness illuminated the importance of consideration for various perspectives in any given situation, as effects of decisions may reverberate far into the future in unpredictable ways. The Welsh pride and regard for their old King prior to their conquering demonstrates such possibility. This lecture also introduced a new appreciation for the relevance of history from across the globe to my own life despite my initial assumption of irrelevance. While I embarked on our trip subconsciously intending to study only the subject of focus for the course — Engineering Castles and Cathedrals — I found it equally imperative to relate current events closer to home in order to appreciate all I learned. Knowing the impacts of the English conquest of Wales on Welsh attitudes towards their government and nationalism, I was prompted to consider balance between the role of individual citizens in action and the power of governing forces in any country’s operation.

Furthermore, our Welsh lecturer as well as other scattered locals heavily associated our origins in America with Trump’s presidency and the complex considerations associated with such government. The ability to observe foreign views on my own country again stressed the importance of developing a global perspective in order to relate to and possibly work with foreign citizens in the future.

As a student in engineering, I dream of working alongside professionals of myriad origins, applying my skills and knowledge to solve global issues and improve lives in any way possible. I realize, as emphasized by the connections observed and created between locals and our class, that perspectives on a given global issue are susceptible to the influence of an individual’s location and home country, as every country may be affected differently by a political move, environmental concern, or other global or local event. In order to understand the reality of the issues I hope to help solve and to determine the optimal solution, it is necessary to maintain an open and understanding mind regarding various views on a topic and to respect the perspectives and opinions of others in order to learn from them and benefit from others’ feedback. In order to achieve my engineering goals and develop social awareness, it is important to become a globally considerate professional by expanding my cultural understanding and keeping an open perspective whenever possible, as this program has taught me to do.