March 2014   REGION DIRECTOR'S REPORT Board Tackles Strategic Topics; Elects 11 Distinguished Members; Votes on LA Section’s Proposal to Form 501(c)6 Kristina Swallow, P.E., M.ASCE, your Region 8 Director, is a member of the Nevada Section and works as Engineering Program Manager of Public Works for the City of Las Vegas. Kristina represented you at the January 21, 2014, ASCE Board of Direction meeting, which was held via conference call. She and fellow Board members dealt with a variety of issues, including the following:: The Board received a report on the creation of a new Community Engineering Corps in partnership with Engineers Without Borders–USA (EWB-USA) and the American Water Works Association. The program will facilitate providing pro bono engineering services to underserved communities in the U.S. and builds upon ASCE’s long-time relationship and support of EWB-USA. The Board believes ASCE’s involvement in this new program will address significant underserved community needs in the United States, while also addressing the interests of those ASCE members who want to serve but are unable to travel internationally due to work and family commitments. Watch for a series of informational webinars this spring to learn more about the program and how to participate. Learn more about the program. The Board considered a proposal from the Los Angeles Section to create a 501(c)6 entity to allow unlimited lobbying, participate in a more meaningful way in public policy discussions, and form a Political Action Committee (PAC). ASCE and its Sections and Branches are classified by the IRS as 501(c)3 tax exempt non-profit organizations. Organizations with this tax status are not permitted to establish PACs or endorse political candidates. To better understand the implications of the LA Section’s proposal, the Board took part in a webinar on February 20 to explore the pros and cons of approving such a change. The Board has scheduled a vote on the proposal for its meeting on March 21.  The Board authorized ASCE’s Structural Engineering Institute and its Coasts, Oceans, Ports, and Rivers Institute to use funds from their reserves in the current fiscal year to develop a U.S. tsunami inundation map for inclusion in the 2016 edition of ASCE 7, Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures. The Board agreed that the positive benefits of this activity for the profession and the public justified an out-of-cycle budget expenditure. As part of its ongoing efforts to improve its effectiveness, the Board held a retreat in Charlotte in October 2013 in conjunction with the ASCE Annual Conference. Looking back at the results, the Board spent some time at its January meeting discussing how to define one of the core values identified in Charlotte — thinking strategically. The Board agreed that this is essential to its performance both for individual Board members and as a body, but pinpointing what that means can be elusive. The Board will continue discussion of Board values at its next meeting, in March. 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. Do you have questions about the Board’s actions, or ideas on how ASCE can better serve its members and the profession?  Email Kristina.  ARIZONA SECTION Does a P.E. license apply in Indian country, and if so, how? “As independent sovereign nations, Tribes are free to choose to recognize the regulatory authority of a state agency,” including the Arizona board in charge of licensing professional engineers, architects, and contractors, writes Roger Owens, an ASCE member who is licensed as an attorney and a professional engineer. Owens details what tribes are willing to accept in an article for the Arizona Section’s latest newsletter.  Read newsletter>>  Section website>>  ANCHORAGE SECTION Younger Member Forum celebrates bringing WRYMC to Anchorage in 2016 In Phoenix in 2014, they agreed to go to Anchorage in 2016 – the “they” being the 22 ASCE younger member groups voting on where to hold the Western Regional Younger Members Conference in two years. The Anchorage Branch Younger Member Forum secured the bid with a package that included a video presentation and full endorsements from the overall Branch and the Alaska Section. The YMF shares its enthusiasm for hosting the first WRYMC in Alaska in the February Anchorage Branch newsletter.   Read more>>   Branch website>> SEATTLE SECTION 19 years of exciting students about engineering via popsicle sticks Photo courtesy Seattle Younger Member Forum The 19th annual Popsicle Stick Bridge Competition staged by the Seattle Section’s Younger Member Forum at Boeing’s Museum of Flight was its most successful ever, drawing more than 200 students from 15 schools.  Of the 70 teams competing, Puget Sound Community School was the winner with its Thing One, which held 1,636 lbs., despite weighing only 287 grams - an impressive 0.63 lbs.  Section website>>  COLUMBIA SECTION Researchers make biocrude oil from algae Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, WA, have now developed a process for creating a form of biocrude oil from algae that shows promise in addressing many of the complications that have made the procedure economically unfeasible on a large scale before. Find out more in ASCE’s online Civil Engineering magazine. Read story>>  Outreach event? Concrete Canoe? Let us know and we'll announce it here! Spring is around the corner, 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 state legislators, 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 Region 8 update? See the February edition of News Around Region 8 Share this page via social media and email: