The first set of cases we are developing illustrate organizations which make sound engineering design decisions based on the best knowledge available. These cases feature organizations that think carefully about safety, the public good, and the environment, yet find themselves in trouble (Dow Corning A and B; American Solar Network A and B). What they lack is moral imagination:  the ability to disengage themselves from their engineering/scientific point of view, to be aware of the ways in which other people frame and structure their experience, and to understand and evaluate their activities through perspectives that are different from, even alien to, their own.

A second set of cases are being built around the challenge of trying to meet a rule-based Kantian imperative which argues that risk should virtually be eliminated. Engineering students are typically trained in a more utilitarian perspective that engages in a cost/benefit analysis of design-environmental costs, risks, and outcomes. These cases will encourage students to exercise moral imagination by trying to meet challenges such as: Can one design a product that is environmentally sustainable and viable in the marketplace? Can one take into account and/or avoid social and political risks that are inherent in any product design? (DesignTex, Inc. A and B; Rohner Textil A through E; Guilford, Inc.; Neem/W. R. Grace; Ecover; Solar Electric Light Fund; Environmental Protection Agency).

The goal of the project is to develop and disseminate cases and supporting materials that teach students to exercise good judgment and moral imagination, that help them learn that design always entails an ethical perspective, and that demonstrate that environmental design is both challenging and viable.