A systems thinking mindset and skillset are essential to the future of engineering

You have probably heard of ‘doughnut economics’ – the idea of an “economic mindset that’s fit for our times”. Economist Kate Raworth has drawn two concentric circles – the doughnut. The inner represents a “social floor” – a sufficient standard of living to assure wellbeing that is attainable by all people. The outer represents an “ecological ceiling”, above which human activity harms the Earth’s systems.

Doughnut economics challenges us to operate within this zone, to deliver the human benefits envisioned in the UN Sustainable Development Goals, while ensuring a thriving planet, upon which humanity’s very existence depends.

How should engineers respond? What would doughnut engineering look like? These are the questions that Engineers Without Borders (EWB) UK seek to answer. They also lie at the heart of a manifesto paper, ‘Connect to change: Unlocking the value of systems thinking in the built environment’, published with EWB’s endorsement in July.

EWB UK is a diverse and inclusive community of changemakers consisting of volunteers, student chapter members, university and industry partners, educators, committed individuals, trustees and staff.

We are on a mission to transform engineering into a core driving force towards a society that balances the needs of all people with the needs of our planet.

Changing skillset

We believe this requires systems change. Just as the built environment should be seen as a “system of systems”, so too can the world of engineering – the broad range of disciplines and skills required in the built environment and more broadly. This demands that we rethink what it means to be an engineer today; equipping engineers with critical competencies that complement their technical knowhow.

As Kate Raworth notes in her bestselling book Doughnut Economics, operating ’within the doughnut’ requires a radical rethink and re-engineering of how Western living standards are enabled 

The full breadth of considerations can seem overwhelming. So we’ve boiled them down to a core set of four principles for a “globally responsible” approach to engineering, underpinned by 12 competencies. The principles are to be:

1. Responsible: meeting the needs of all people within the limits of our planet

2. Purposeful: shaping equitable and ethical outcomes

3. Inclusive: including and respecting diverse viewpoints and knowledge

4. Regenerative: maximising the ability of all living systems to achieve and maintain a healthier state and naturally co-evolve

The principles and competencies are set out in a Competency Compass, a tool that helps engineering practitioners understand their development needs and points them to relevant learning resources, including in systems thinking.

Our 12 competencies complement the theory of change set out in ‘Connect to change’. It starts with setting a realistic scope – understanding what comprises the system you intend to change, while being aware of connections and influences across the ‘system boundary’. Next it addresses outcomes – current and desired – and how those are, or can be, delivered by the system. Last, it identifies ‘interventions’ that will change the system to deliver the desired change in outcomes, all the while monitoring performance, to learn and improve.

EWB UK runs a Systems Change Lab, open to engineers and non-engineers, exploring ideas and identifying points of influence that can lead to systemic change. In its first year, the Lab focused on changes needed within the higher education system to embed the principles of global responsibility into engineering courses. One output was a ‘Reimagined degree map’, developed with the Royal Academy of Engineering and launched in March 2024, to empower educators to align their curricula with today’s societal, environmental and economic challenges.

A second Lab was launched in spring 2025 and concluded at the end of the year. It focused on education and upskilling; the standards that underpin engineering qualifications and professional registration; the roles and values of engineers; policy and risk; and communication of change. We’ll be describing next steps in early 2026.

Rethink and re-engineer

As Kate Raworth notes in her bestselling book Doughnut Economics, operating “within the doughnut” requires a radical rethink and re-engineering of how Western living standards are enabled. That has to start with engineers developing and deploying skills in systems thinking and systems engineering.

Doughnut engineering is in our sights. Achieving it requires connected and collaborative effort. That is why the message and principles of ‘Connect to change’ are important. It is why the ‘Complex systems toolkit’ developed by the Engineering Professors Council is hugely welcome. And it’s why the resources and guidance we’ve created to date need to be used more widely, tested and improved.

We invite you to collaborate with us and become part of an essential movement. Become a doughnut engineer.

John Kraus is CEO of Engineers Without Borders UK