Harish Raisinghani

We live in a society where we’re easily distracted, with the phone, with running from meeting to meeting. People put off spending time with family and friends, and with themselves. I wish we could all contribute better to society, that we could be better at interacting with other people.

Harish Raisinghani is president of the Vancouver Professional Chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB). And at the age of 26, he is not a typical engineer, if you believe any of the stereotypes that engineers are passionate about technology and may lack the ability to interact with people.  Harish’s father comes from Delhi and his mother is from the state of Gujarat; this connection with India informs his ability to dream big and work hard.  

Like many of his fellow students in the Engineering Physics program at the University of British Columbia, Harish was struck by the lack of meaning behind the assigned class projects. Learning about the issues is what inspires him and this has translated to collaborating with others for global change.  Engineers Without Borders Canada is a movement of professional engineers, students, overseas volunteers,  staff, and supporters from across Canada. Together, they are almost 50,000 strong with 34 chapters across the country. A significant component of their support comes from chapters on university campuses. EWB is focused on four countries: Burkina Faso, Ghana, Zambia and Malawi. They believe that generations of rural Africans should have the same opportunities to improve their lives that we have right here at home.

One of Harish’s pivotal experiences with EWB was volunteering on a computer literacy project in the Philippines, where he met teenagers just like himself, with the same passions and ambitions but without the same opportunities or finances. “This experience changed my life and my view of the world, as it helped me put things in perspective.” At the same time, Harish was struck by the level of support and cooperation between the people he met. “The host family I lived with in the Philippines had very little in terms of material goods. But the interaction between the family members and between neighbours had an incredible richness that’s truly lacking in our society.”

Harish is hoping to harness the power of cooperation to effect change here in Canada in terms of people’s attitudes and behaviours and he sees evidence that this is possible. “When you look at the major issues, such as the disaster in Haiti, and the outpouring of resources, you see that people do care. You need to tap into that, because people want to feel that they are having a positive impact. And look at Copenhagen – when was the last time you saw the entire world addressing one issue?”

It is working together that will, according to Harish, transform the world. “Change does begin with one person, but it’s when you start coordinating the efforts of several people that you build a movement. Look at fair trade thirty years ago. It was a novel concept. But through the efforts of a few committed people, the movement is spreading to entire countries and societies.” The important part is not to be afraid to set lofty goals. Harish himself has adopted one of EWB’s mission statements as his own - “dream big, work hard.”

In addition to his immersion in international development work, and his professional life at Fransen Engineering Ltd., Harish is devoting countless hours to his most challenging collaborative effort yet: rollerblading in a choreographed routine for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 2010 Olympics.