Engineer Plants Seeds of Hope in to Students in the Middle East

George Zimmerman, P.E., engineering chief in our Duluth office, traveled to Jericho in the Palestinian territories in the Middle East, where he worked with an international non-profit to educate local high school students about careers in civil engineering.

While in Jericho, George volunteered with the local staff of the Seeds of Hope organization. Seeds of Hope partners with other strategic organizations and individuals who aim to instill hope and bridge cultural commonalities within impoverished and disadvantaged regions of the Middle East. Among other volunteer activities, George presented to nearly 700 high school students at the organization’s Career Day before providing additional information about civil engineering to smaller, more intimate groups of students.

In one session, a student asked what was most important in becoming a good engineer. “I summed it up in one word to him and the group: integrity,” George said. “I think this surprised him, that it was not something to do with education.”