Oct. 18, 2024
The University of Michigan is home to many engineering-focused student organizations, but one in particular stands out. BLUElab is the largest sustainably-focused engineering project team on campus. As a multidisciplinary design team that focuses on developing sustainable solutions alongside community partners, BLUElab emulates the Ginsberg Center’s principles of Centering on Equity and Starting with Community.
BLUElab offers several different projects and teams new members can participate in, and each team utilizes a design process called “socially-engaged design.”
“Socially-engaged design is making sure to engage stakeholders and ensuring that they're constantly involved in that process,” said Mobin Mazloomian, BLUElab’s president. “The goal is that we're not designing for ourselves, but with the social conditions and lived experiences of the people we're designing for in mind and at the forefront of our work.”
BLUElab provides a unique opportunity for socially conscious engineering students who are looking for important local projects that pertain to their own university and community issues.
“As engineering students, we get to work with real people and solve real problems and get exposed to what you would be doing in the real world,” said Project Manager Julia Lamy. “Getting to work on carbon neutrality for the University and for Ann Arbor is really special, and there aren’t many orgs that let you be involved in that.”
With the guidance of Ginsberg staff advisors, BLUElab board members are able to navigate community partnerships centering on equity.
“Working with community organizations means difficult conversations,” said Lamy. “Our Ginsberg advising sessions were helpful to make sure that both parties were having their needs met.”