With a passion for environmental engineering, Tarannom has been an avid volunteer throughout her time as a student. She discusses her experience and the importance of giving back.

What inspired you to study engineering? Were you considering anything else?  

I grew up not really knowing exactly what I wanted to do. I had many interests and wanted to study everything from the humanities and arts to medical and natural sciences and mathematics. My mum, who is a great mentor of mine, encouraged me to try engineering. While she saw that I was good at math and physics, I realised later that engineering was a perfect fit for my analytical and problem-solving skills.  

Why is environmental engineering important to you?  

My vision for a fulfilling career is one where I can develop individually while also contributing to my community—a twofold purpose, essentially. Environmental engineering offers a broad perspective and equips you with the tools to tackle real-world challenges with underlying social issues, such as climate change, water and wastewater management, solid waste management, air quality, renewable energy and many more. 

I think the question for an environmental engineer is: how can we bridge scientific principles and social change in a way that effectively addresses these challenges?  

You have held many volunteering roles in the past; why is it important for you to give back?  

This ties nicely into the twofold purpose I described earlier. Engineers Australia is a community of engineers at various stages of their careers and I viewed my volunteering roles as chances to learn from others while contributing as a student at the time.  

What benefits did you gain from volunteering?  

Volunteering with Engineers Australia was my first exposure to working with young professional engineers. It was the perfect opportunity to observe how more experienced engineers thought, communicated and collaborated, whether in networking, organising events or presenting to peers.