Principles of Transdisciplinary Engineering – Version 1 (5th May 2023)
The success of the ISTE depends on having a larger and growing community focused onunderstanding and developing Transdisciplinary Engineering (TE) practice. We believe thatby thoughtfully defining TE we can consolidate the community, give it direction, andconnect meaningfully to other communities.
However, for emerging disciplines such as Transdisciplinary Engineering it is not always
possible or indeed desirable to immediately implement an “absolute definition”. Within
this document we seek to create a “working definition”, which will be regularly reviewed
and updated by the members of the ISTE. In this way it helps to frame discussions, whilst
allowing the opportunity for the community to reflect, consolidate and evolve it’s aims andscope.
Proposed rationale for being interested in TE:
Learning to do TE is central to being a better engineer. It means understanding ‘better’ notin a purely technical sense, but recognising that better can mean creating designs, processes
and technologies that help more people than originally intended, create fewer harms andparticipate in bringing about better outcomes both inside and outside any individual project.
Proposed characteristics of TE
Below we set out a table which aims to characterise traditional engineering (TradE) workwith TE work to provide clear boundaries between the two. These differences are rooted inbasic concepts underpinning TE:--Systems thinking (using concepts from systems analysis such as elements,connectedness, feedback and so on to understand an issue and identify design
options)
Collaborative (working together equally to resolve challenges and overcome
obstacles in doing the above to execute the project effectively. E.g., to integrate thework from different communities – this could include:o Inclusive practice (actively collaborating with non-engineers in practice byworking with non-disciplinary/industry/community groups.)
o Interdisciplinary practice (seeking active collaboration with non-engineering
disciplines to select and apply sensibly ideas, methods, etc)
Reflexive critical thinking (reflects on the role of themselves as an engineer in a
project and to what extent they are contributing to better outcomes in industry
and/or society)

Understanding what this means for practiceThe main distinction between TradE and TE is the willingness of the engineer to ‘open up’
design and management decisions to a wider set of people, criteria and ideas and spend
time and thought reflecting on and resolving any conflicts arising inclusively.

1

Traditional Engineering
Solves the problem presented as anengineering only problem

Transdisciplinary Engineering
Asks how the problem fits into widersocial/environmental systems, asking is this theright problem to solve?
Applies only technical criteria toIncorporates social/environmental criteria toidentifying a good solution setidentify a good solution set
Designs only according to client criteria, Integrates wider criteria into design decisions,modulated by traditional engineeringresolving issues of client, engineering and society
criteria
via negotiation and influence
Uses maths/models alone to assess
Incorporates a variety of methods including thosequality of approaches
from social sciences to understand social fit
Works only within their technical team Collaborates equally with those across anor other technical specialists
organisation and seeks critical input from externalbodies too
Sees only value in engineering input to Actively seeks out and values input from nondesign decisions
engineers into design decisions
Transdisciplinary engineering is therefore an evolution of engineering practice thatcombines insight from different fields to create better outcomes in industry and society.
In contrast, traditional engineering focuses on the application of standard engineering
methods in practice, rooted in standard concepts of good practice such as adhering to ISO
standards, chartering standards or application of analytic methods taught in mainstream
engineering degrees.
Acknowledgements:
Creation of this document was led by Adam Cooper, UCL but reflects the combined effortsof members of the ISTE Council and Board. We send our thanks to all those involved.

2