Eftychia Koursari, Civil Engineer in Amey Consulting, has been named as one of the Top 50 Women in Engineering 2020 by the Women’s Engineering Society.
This year the awards focused on female engineers working on sustainable strategies and solutions in the industry. The judges were looking at their commitment to address the challenges of the climate emergency, net zero carbon and delivery of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
All WE50 winners are also advocates of women in STEM, and who promote women’s role in tackling the climate crisis and are using their experience of sustainability to inspire and influence others.
The prestigious list of women was announced on International Women in Engineering Day.
Effie’s speciality is scour, the removal of material from the bed and banks of a water body and from around structures’ foundations by the action of water, and she has helped to design advanced solutions that protect both the environment and infrastructure, working towards more sustainable techniques and watercourse restoration. Her work has been published in several international conferences and scientific journals. Effie is currently carrying out her PhD, funded by Amey, carrying out research in river processes and sustainable river engineering techniques at the University of Glasgow’s Water Engineering laboratory.
Commenting on her recognition, Eftychia Koursari commented: “It is an honour to be recognised and to be featured in this list of inspirational Engineers, particularly given this year’s focus is sustainability.
“Scour is the primary cause of bridge collapse worldwide. Climate change has resulted in flood events increasing both in frequency and in magnitude, making scour and other hydraulic actions some of the most important challenges for engineering going forward.
“However, grey, hard engineering techniques used in the past have not only damaged the ecosystem, but have also been proven to be non-effective. Through my work at Amey and my PhD research, which is a partnership between Amey and the University of Glasgow, I am helping to lead the industry towards more sustainable techniques and watercourse restoration and a more sustainable future.
“As an advocate for women in engineering and one of the 200+ STEM Ambassadors at Amey, I am proud to be helping inspire the next generation of Engineers by encouraging girls and people from diverse backgrounds to take up a career in engineering.”
Commenting on the list, Head Judge Sally Sudworth (FCRM Sustainability Lead) said: “The submissions of these wonderful role models were simply inspirational. Amy Johnson was one of the founder members of the Women’s Engineering Society and we celebrate the 90th anniversary of her solo flights this year. Our winners are equally remarkable in their field.”
Amey’s 'Women@Amey' network has over 400 members, where we aim to attract, support, develop and retain women at Amey by supporting women to achieve their career goals, celebrating their successes and by promoting our business and what we do, to a wider audience.
Amey is also working with Girlguiding UK to raise awareness of the importance of STEM education and careers for girls. The partnership has already reached more than 150,000 Rainbows, Brownies and Guides.
To find out more about Diversity and Inclusion at Amey, visit: https://www.amey.co.uk/getting-started/diversity-inclusion/