The School of Sustainable Design Engineering at the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) has received a commitment of $16-million in government investments from the province. A new state-of-the-art engineering building will require $12-million in development funding while the remaining $4-million will go towards operating costs for the new engineering degree.

The new program, which will be housed in the engineering building, will focus on mechatronics, bioresources and sustainable energy engineering.

“As the primary funder of this new initiative, our government recognizes that UPEI is a tremendous post-secondary institute,” says Allen Roach, Innovation and Advanced Learning Minister for P.E.I. “This new specialized engineering degree program was strategically chosen, due to increasing demand for both engineering graduates and increasing student interest.”

The decision to move forward with a specialized engineering program is the result of several years of research on the part of UPEI senior management and the recommendations of the Provincial Post-Secondary Task Force. The facility breaks ground this week and is scheduled for completion in fall 2016.

“The University of Prince Edward Island is undertaking a transformative approach to post-secondary education by putting innovation into action and establishing the new School of Sustainable Design Engineering,” says Alaa Abd-El-Aziz, UPEI President and Vice-Chancellor. “We are creating a professional engineering R&D workspace on the UPEI campus where students and faculty will work alongside industry clients to design solutions that better society and contribute to global challenges.”