What progress are we making in solving the world’s greatest engineering challenges?

Three years ago, E+T undertook a project called Critical Targets during the 150th anniversary celebrations of the IET. The idea was to draw a line in the sand with some of the greatest challenges facing society and the planet – more specifically, areas in which the engineering and technology sector is providing the foundations for resolving those problems. In this article, we look at those Critical Targets in the company of ‘champions’ for each one – often the same champions from 2021.

Three years is not that long, yet it has been a tumultuous spell in our history, with a pandemic stagnating economies and altering the way we live and work, conflicts with far-reaching economic consequences – such as in Ukraine – and a lack of trust in politicians and the media borne out, at least partly, by developments in artificial intelligence and other technologies.

Many of our global issues are related to the environment...