On Thursday, October 17, DiscoverE partnered with AISES, an organization that works to advance Indigenous people in STEM, on Chats with Change Makers. Our student host Enrique got to interview Change Maker Mille Bigler, a mechanical designer who engineers heating and cooling systems.
Chats with Change Makers is designed to showcase real engineers and technicians to students in grades 4-12 and make real world connections to the engineering profession, as well as reflect the diversity of the students who participate!
You can watch the full interview below, but here are some of our favorite bits!
Question: What is one skill that technicians and engineers of the future should develop?
Answer: I think communication is a big thing. So in my role, collaboration is a really big thing because like I mentioned, I collaborate with all of the other disciplines to make sure that my design works. I could have a great design, but if it doesn’t work with everybody else, that’s not going to work. And so just being able to communicate with others is really important.
Question: What is one future trend in the world of hvac design or mechanical engineering that excites you?
Answer: I think this, for me, that comes back to sustainability again. And so finding new ways or the best ways to make equipment really sustainable and make your systems really sustainable, because that’s not only good for the environment, but having more efficient equipment can also mean less equipment, which overall can be hopefully less expensive for the client. I want to protect the environment and build things that are, you know, not going to hurt the environment in the long term.
Question: In what ways do you. In what ways do you think your job encourages you to be a change maker?
Answer: And so I think just staying on top of sustainability, Another thing for me is being a minority woman. I’ve seen the diversity of our engineering field change a lot. So I’ve been working at my firm for ten years now. It’s been ten years since I graduated. And so I think just continuing to advocate for people that look like me to be in our field.