April 2014       REGION DIRECTOR'S REPORT Board Tackles Strategic Topics; Elects 11 Distinguished Members; Votes on LA Section’s Proposal to Form 501(c)6 Your Region 10 Director, Himansu "Ron" Banerjee, Ph.D., CPEng, F.ASCE, is a consulting structural engineer based in Newcastle, Australia, who with the assistance of many devoted ASCE members there, founded the Australia Section. Ron represented you at the March 21-22, 2014, ASCE Board of Direction meeting, which was held in Arlington, Virginia. Ron has his fellow ASCE Board of Direction members dealt with a variety of issues, including the following: The Board began its meeting with a facilitated strategic planning session as part of its ongoing role to shape policy for the future of ASCE and the profession. In break-out groups, Board members were asked to explore the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and strengths (SWOT) of both the civil engineering profession and ASCE as an association. The groups then singled out what issues might be most important to tackle first and reported out. Results will be consolidated and further discussed and refined offline and at future meetings. Furthering its strategic approach under ASCE’s new governance structure of fewer Board committees and more communication, the Board participated in discussions led by three of the eight Board and Strategic Initiative committees.  Michael Mucha, P.E., M.ASCE, chair of the Committee on Sustainability, challenged the Board to consider whether ASCE could embrace a future in which civil engineers are defined not just by what they build, but also by what they don’t build. In another committee session, chair of the Raise the Bar Committee Blaine Leonard, P.E., D.GE, Pres.10.ASCE, sought feedback from the Board on the potential for a new, more robust approach in leading the charge to adopt the NCEES model law, and its increased education requirements for licensure, in a number of states. The Board will explore the possibilities further at its July meeting. In her time before the Board, Committee on Advancing the Profession (CAP) chair Renee Schwecke, P.E., M.ASCE, touched on topics ranging from technologist credentialing to diversity in the profession. The Board asked CAP to study the possible development of an ASCE policy on the issue of allowing engineers to sit for the P.E. exam prior to the completion of the experiential requirement, a provision that is now part of the NCEES Model Law. The nature of the P.E. exam itself will likely become a focus for study as well. The question arises whether the exam truly tests content that one learns from experience.  After careful deliberation, the  Board voted not to approve a proposal from the Los Angeles Section to create a new, parallel 501(c)6 organization, which would have allowed the Section to do unlimited lobbying and potentially gain greater access to public policy discussions with lawmakers through the establishment of a Political Action Committee (PAC). Prior to the vote, there was robust discussion, reflecting a range of views among Board members. There was widespread belief that the Society should enable self-governance of its units to the greatest degree possible, and a belief that the LA Section leaders had done an admirable job of presenting their case. On the other hand, there was great concern expressed that a PAC with ASCE’s name, even if just a local or regional entity, risked irrevocably altering ASCE’s stature as a non-partisan, non-political organization. In an executive session, the Board discussed the task ahead to find a new executive director to succeed Pat Natale, who will be retiring at the end of 2014. The Board identified what it believes are the most important qualifications for this position, and provided input for use by the search committee, chaired by Past President Greg DiLoreto. The search is now underway and applications are due May 31. See www.asce.org/EDsearch for more information. Board members are interested in your views on the issues they are considering. To share your views, or other ideas on how ASCE can better serve its members and the profession, please email Ron.     INTERNATIONAL STUDENT GROUPS ASCE rocks in Lebanon! University in Beirut forming new student group                                  Photo courtesy University of Saint Joseph, Beirut The University of Saint Joseph in Beirut, Lebanon, launched an unofficial ASCE International Student Group in March with their first activity, a conference on campus attended by 450 students, introduced by student group president Christopher Khoury. The event included a lecture by a civil engineering alumnus who discussed the causes behind the collapse of a terminal in 2004 at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport. The unofficial chapter intends to stage the activities required for ASCE sanctioning. Pictured above are officers of the chapter with adviser Wassim Raphael, fourth from left, chairman of the civil and environmental engineering department. An “ASCE band” played during a reception. University website>>   INDIA SECTION, WESTERN REGION Students at university in Mumbai urged to ‘Save Those Watts’ In a collaboration with the ASCE India Section Western Region, the Civil Engineering Students’ Association at Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management and Engineering in Mumbai recently held a brainstorming competition on how to build more energy-efficient infrastructure. The event, called “Save Those Watts,” helped build a sense of urgency among students of the need to improve efficiency amid increasing energy consumption in India.   Visit the school’s Facebook page>> REGION 10 International consultant on air pollution control named ASCE Fellow Michael P. Walsh, P.E., F.ASCE, who has enjoyed a 35-year career as a civil engineer, an engineering manager, and who currently serves as a vice president of engineering in the air pollution control industry, was recently elected an ASCE Fellow. Walsh has designed and supplied innovative capital air-pollution-control systems in 22 countries, thereby reducing particulate and acid rain pollution to the benefit of uncounted hundreds of millions of people. Learn more about Walsh’s award-worthy achievements in ASCE News. IN CIVIL ENGINEERING MAGAZINE ONLINE Climate report calls for engineering solutions The IPCC’s Working Group II examines the impacts of climate change already observed around the world and the need for effective engineered adaptations. Delve into the findings in ASCE’s online Civil Engineering magazine. Read story>>  International team develops real-time structural sensors Teams in Iowa and Italy collaborate to develop two different sensor technologies that will enable real time monitoring of large, complex structures. Explore the breakthroughs in ASCE’s online Civil Engineering magazine. Read story>> A room with a view and a breeze The Ng Teng Fong General Hospital under construction in Singapore features an innovative design to increase natural ventilation and abundant plants to bolster healing. Learn how the design will actually improve health in ASCE’s online Civil Engineering magazine. Read story>>            GLOBAL LINK CALENDAR Click on event titles for details MAY 16-18    International Conference on Sustainable Development of Critical Infrastructure, Shanghai, China OCTOBER 7-11     ASCE/EWB-USA Global Engineering Conference, Panama City, Panama 17-18   International Conference on Sustainable Civil Infrastructure, Hyderabad, India Outreach event? Concrete Canoe? Let us know and we'll announce it here! Spring is here (in much of the world), and we're moving into a very busy time of year. If you’re a local ASCE leader and your Section, Branch, Younger Member Group, or Student Chapter has staged any special events, engaged in outreach from grade-school kids to lawmakers, ramped up for Concrete Canoe regionals, or anything of the sort, let ASCEnews Weekly know and we may include it in next month’s Region report. You may already have written about it and posted pictures in your newsletter, website, or social media. Share the details and any photos at asce.org/localnews. Got questions? Write to submissions@asce.org. Missed last month's Global Link? See the March edition of News Around Region 10 - Global Link                   Share this page via social media and email: