Pull up a chair with Aaron Melamed, E4C’s 5000th member. To commemorate our milestone, we’d like to introduce Aaron to the rest of the E4C community. Photo courtesy of Aaron Melamed

In June, the number of Engineering for Change members hit 5000 and it’s still climbing. To commemorate the occasion, we located the 5000th registrant, Aaron Melamed, to find out who he is and what led him here.

In some ways, he represents most of the E4C community. He’s educated in science, a member of a professional society (ASME), he works to improve his community and he wants to make a difference. Aaron is a student of mechanical engineering at the University of Illinois in Chicago. As such, he represents a growing faction in E4C of members who may not have years of experience, but are thinking about how to put their skills to work for an important cause.

Joining E4C is Aaron’s first foray into the world of humanitarian engineering. He has not yet worked on a project, but he volunteers with food charities in his city and looks forward to participating with E4C. Here, we present a brief Q&A with Aaron.

E4C: How did you hear about E4C and what led you to register?

AM: I got an email through ASME promoting E4C that had a link to the website telling students what it was about and that they could sign up. I read the email and thought it was a great idea and something that I would love to participate in once I had graduated and become a real engineer.

E4C: From among the issues that we cover at E4C (energy, health, structures, water, etc), what matters most to you and why?

AM: I have a lot of passion for all fields, but right now I would say the most important one to me is energy. Prices are rising and resources are dwindling and it is up to us as engineers to do our part in solving the problem. We need to create more efficient processes and guide corporations to make good financial and ecological decisions, not just financial ones.

E4C: Do you plan to get involved with projects through E4C?

AM: In the future, I would like to contribute my knowledge, experience, and can-do attitude to E4C projects to help make things happen and start changing the world for the better.

E4C: What’s one of the most important ways that the E4C community can contribute to development?

AM: To develop better planning for them. From clean water sources to food distribution to education, it is up to us to help out and give them the best that we can deliver.

We’ll keep an eye out for Aaron’s work at E4C… maybe in future energy projects? Thanks, Aaron!