A positive force for tomorrow’s engineers
Lydia Charbonneau has a profound interest in helping people. As a result, she's always seeking personal and professional projects that can have a positive, lasting impact – whether on communities, individuals or the environment.
Armed with a Bachelor in Civil Engineering and a Master's in Geotechnical Engineering, Lydia has completed internships in Ghana and Nunavut that have enriched her perspective and illustrated the daily challenges these populations face. She also championed initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion, and support emerging engineers.
We recently sat down with Lydia to learn more about her background, motivations and interests.
A path focused on people and practical knowledge
After completing her studies, Lydia's priority was to develop her skills by partaking in stimulating, diverse projects and collaborating with accessible, passionate mentors. When she researched Englobe, she was quickly drawn to the company's values of radical caring and positive intrapreneurship.
From the outset, she felt supported by dedicated professionals who enabled her to participate in various projects aligned with her interests.
The kindness, humanity and availability of my leaders, as well as the wide variety of projects on which I collaborated, enabled me to touch on a little bit of everything and to develop practical knowledge, in a climate of respect and trust.
says Lydia Charbonneau, Geotechnical Engineer at Englobe
Given her academic specialization on the impact of climate change on permafrost, Lydia has a particular passion for project work in Canada's North. At Englobe, she was able to put her knowledge into practice by working directly in this part of the country. Notably, Lydia was part of a team tasked with improving and shoring up essential infrastructures in the different communities of Nunavik.
She’s especially drawn to these projects’ technical and logistical complexity, strong environmental aspects, and ability to generate real, lasting benefits for the communities they serve.
Above all, these projects are an opportunity to get to know these communities, to take the time to really talk, listen and learn more about their culture, values and reality.
notes Lydia Charbonneau, Geotechnical Engineer at Englobe
Passionate about equity, diversity and inclusion
Lydia is driven by respect for others and appreciation of our differences. She believes it’s essential to cultivate an inclusive, equitable workplace in which everyone can exchange views respectfully and without judgement. She also believes that despite all the progress made in this area, we must continue to fight the prejudices that remain in certain environments and industries through concrete actions that enable lasting change.
Thanks to her dedication, she recently concluded a partnership agreement with Sherbrooke University’s Génie au Féminin group, whose mission is to value and promote the role of women in engineering.
Lydia also contributed to the creation of the Englobe Award at the same university, a scholarship granted to an exceptional engineering student who embodies the company's values and demonstrates an interest in and aptitude for its various activity sectors. Since then, the Englobe Award was also implemented in more universities, such as University of Ottawa, ETS and Polytechnique Montreal.
In 2023, the inaugural Englobe Award was given to Valérie Morin, an undergraduate in biotechnology engineering.
If we are to find effective solutions to our many current challenges, it is vital to encourage the talent of tomorrow by offering them the right opportunities to thrive.
notes Lydia Charbonneau, Geotechnical Engineer at Englobe
With her deep passion for people, her commitment to northern communities and her leadership in supporting the advancement of future women engineers, Lydia is a force for positive change in her profession, embodying the best of Englobe’s values.
If Lydia’s story speaks to you, learn more about your future at Englobe by visiting our careers page.