Engineer Peacekeeping Opportunities in United Nations Missions

Courtesy Photo | U.S. Air Force Maj. Dustin Gooden, right, Strategic Basing Division, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Installations and chief of basing corporate branch, works alongside military peacekeepers to conceptualize security plans for the United Nation’s critical infrastructure in Juba, South Sudan, Aug. 16 2021. In conflict-ridden parts of the world, UN peacekeepers are military, police and civilian personnel from across the world that work together to provide hope and support to these countries and their people. (Courtesy photo)  

JUBA, SUDAN

01.01.2023

Courtesy Story

60th Air Mobility Wing

JUBA, South Sudan – United Nations (UN) military peacekeeping is the complex task of maintaining peace, security and achieving strategic mission objectives.

In conflict-ridden parts of the world, UN peacekeepers are military, police and civilian personnel from across the world that work together to provide hope and support for people.

U.S. Air Force engineers have a unique opportunity to support this mission while growing their engineering expertise. The UN’s 365-day extended deployments through the U.S. Army’s Military Observer Group are a hidden gem within the civil engineer community and it provides an opportunity to challenge and build your leadership skills in many different, uncommon situations.

Although the U.S. Engineering Staff Officer in UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is a staff position, it is much more comprehensive than a typical engineer staff job.

In a typical day, you often work priorities across the entire spectrum of mission to tactical level objectives. As the staff officer, you will build-out long-term projects and establish procurement plans to meet UNMISS mandated objectives.

In this position, you will liaise with the Chief Engineer and Director of Mission Support to achieve Special Representative of the Secretary-General coordination and Secretary-General approval of future spending plans to accomplish those requirements.

While those are some of the high-level duties, you will also see your planned projects come to life through tactical-level construction projects.

U.S. Air Force Maj. Dustin Gooden, Strategic Basing Division, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for installations and chief of basing corporate branch, deployed in 2020-2021 and Capt. Jack Robinson, 60th Civil Engineer Squadron installation management flight commander, replaced Gooden from 2021-2022, both filled this position.

During his deployment, Gooden worked on a collaborative humanitarian dike repair between the U.S. Embassy in South Sudan, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the World Food Program (WFP) and UNMISS. He travelled to Bor, South Sudan, and provided USAID with an unbiased engineering and feasibility assessment of repairing the sole dike separating the River Nile from the local population.

The end state of this project restored 94 dike breaks, alleviated rainy season flooding and ensured WFP delivery of 60,000 metric tons of nutrition to over 250,000 starving flood victims.

Gooden worked with 17 different UN partner nation military units which included China, Nepal, India and Ethiopia to build emergency food composting pits within their camps. The project decreased the overall environmental impact to 33,000 internally displaced persons (IDP) and 2,000 UN personnel located in the local area.

Robinson replaced Gooden in October 2021. During his deployment, Robinson led a project to upgrade the storm and wastewater infrastructure inside an IDP camp. He worked alongside UN Police to prevent flooding and sewage overflow during the rainy season for 7,300 refugees living in the camp.

Robinson oversaw a significant infrastructure upgrade at a key UN base in Yei, South Sudan. Following a site survey, he sourced $2 million of resources and deployed Bangladesh engineers to the base to complete 13 projects. At the conclusion of the construction and after several visits to the base by helicopter, Robinson and the Bangladesh engineers postured the base to protect 260,000 locals from violence in the region.

Over the course of their deployments, Gooden and Robinson both had the opportunity to lead a civil-military cooperation project with the Chief Executive Officer and Mayor of Juba and the Executive Director of the Juba City Council to develop a municipal solid waste dumping site in Juba.

The Bangladesh Engineering Company ultimately performed this construction—which repaired a four-kilometer road and cleared 20,000 metric tons of garbage dumped in Juba City and UNMISS.

Gooden and Robinson also worked on an exciting project which included members from Rwanda, Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh to provide a contingency security plan for the main water intake point for UNMISS headquarters. This project allowed them to share best emergency management practices with members from each of the individual countries and come to a comprehensive, agreed-upon solution.

In each of these projects, Gooden and Robinson learned from individuals with vastly different backgrounds and levels of expertise. This deployment's joint and international setting provides an outstanding opportunity to learn and grow as a USAF Civil Engineer Officer.

The different perspectives and cultural awareness you build are special, which will expand your overall leadership toolbox. This opportunity is highly recommended for Captains who would like a unique experience working in an environment unmatched by many staff opportunities. USAF EOD officers are also eligible to apply for the 365-day deployment in UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).

If you are interested in these positions, you can find more information by contacting the USAF Civil Engineer Officer Assignment Team. Capt. Pablo Andrade ([e-mail]) or Maj. Margaret Rawls ([e-mail]).

The contents expressed herein are not necessarily the official views of or endorsed by the 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs. This commentary was written to help advertise the positions Robinson and Gooden held, who also wrote this commentary.

• Date Taken: 01.01.2023
• Date Posted: 01.04.2023 14:06
• Story ID: 436257
• Location: JUBA, SD