President Obama

Global Engineering and Sustainability- The growing importance of India and China, Part 1

Ernst G. Frankel (2005)1 presented the case that after leading the world for 200 years in political, technological, economic, military, and even social terms, America is being challenged. India and China – new emerging economic powers, with advancing technological prowess – he has argued are beginning to challenge America’s leadership. While these countries have been focusing on socio-economic development, their capabilities and potentials are much broader he has contended.

Early this year in his state of the union address2 President Obama has reiterated this saying that America needs ―to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world … as nations like China and India have realized that with some changes of their own, they can compete in this new world…. They have started educating their children earlier and longer, with greater emphasis on math and science he says. They‘re investing in research and new technologies. Just recently, China became the home to the world‘s largest private solar research facility and the world‘s fastest computer.‖ If global experts are to be believed, India and China will be central hubs for the employment of engineers and other knowledge workers in the coming years.