President's Blog

For my last blog entry I could reflect on my last year as president...but I'll be doing a lot of that at the annual conference this week. Instead, I'd like to talk about what brought me to this position and what's next for the role of president, as David Mongan takes the helm on Saturday.

One of the main reasons I was interested in filling the role of ASCE president was my desire to follow many of my heroes...leaders who lived a life of integrity. ASCE has been blessed with countless engineers who have stepped forward to spend a year in office. I believe that to truly fill a leadership role, you must understand "followship." Now that's a word that I just made up ( I guess you could call it a "Bill-ism" ) but the idea behind it is important for the role of ASCE president. I am proud to have followed in those leaders' footsteps over the past year. A lot of what I have done this year has followed in the great tradition of these role models and I am confident that David Mongan will be an inspiring leader. I know David to be a man whose life is based on ethics, integrity and high principles. He comes well prepared for this role as he has served in almost every chair that ASCE offers! He's had just about all the opportunities available to truly understand ASCE's past, present and future. David has a passion for diversity, Engineers Without Borders and implementation of Vision 2025. I wish David great success in his upcoming year.  I encourage members to support him and his initiatives and get to know him a bit by visiting his president's blog. My job in the last days of my presidency is to finish my final lap of this relay race and to pass the baton to David, so that he too can run his lap to the best of his ability.

Thank you for making my first blogging experience a rewarding one. I've thoroughly enjoyed discussing important issues with our members through this forum and have appreciated all your comments and well wishes.

In early October, I attended an induction ceremony, where Ray Krizek, a 1961 master's degree graduate in civil engineering was inducted into Innovation Hall of Fame at the University of Maryland. Krizek, who is currently a professor emeritus at Northwestern University, was inducted for his contributions to geotechnical engineering and the field of slurry mechanics. Only 23 engineers have received this distinguished honor, which recognizes engineers for their technological accomplishments and recognizes innovation at the concept, design or working levels of engineering.

I was surprised to hear that Ray is the first civil engineer to be inducted into this Hall of Fame. I wonder why this is and whether or not much of the clever innovative work of civil engineers has been accomplished. And if it has, why hasn't it been more recognized? Civil engineering has been around for 200 years and an amazing amount of progress has been made in that time. We've become good at doing what we do, but as we look to the future, the area that is bright for innovation is found in the borders of civil engineering and other fields, such as biology, chemistry, banking and finance, public policy, etc. Many young people might come into the field with a B.A. in biology and an M.S. in engineering, or a B.S. in engineering and an M.S. in public policy. These combinations can prove to be extremely important as the role of civil engineers evolves. What's important to note is that the gap between these areas needs to be filled, and I believe that research and innovation can accomplish this. These are the areas where civil engineers should take on a more creative role for the benefit of the profession.

How do you work to bring innovative thinking and technology to your job?

There's an ancient African proverb that states: "It takes a village to raise a child." This proverb reinforces the idea that it takes a community of individuals supporting each other in order to raise a child. I believe the same can be said for ASCE. From the leadership at ASCE National to the elected Board of Direction to Section and Branch leaders working in their regions...it is the joint efforts of all these groups working with our staff that have allowed ASCE to grow and evolve over the past 155 years.

I will be in Washington, D.C. at the end of this week and during my time there I plan to visit ASCE National to thank our staff who continue to work diligently for ASCE and its members. While it is our volunteer members who establish the direction for ASCE, it is largely staff that executes many of these directions. Like the network of civil engineering professionals who comprise ASCE's membership, ASCE staff members possess diverse professional backgrounds and bring their expertise to benefit our Society and our profession. One very important thing that we all share is a love for the civil engineering profession. Each member of this community is vested in the continued success of our Society. I firmly believe that it is the team mentality and not just individuals themselves that drive success.  As I like to say, there is no "I" in team and I think our Society is proof that through hard work and determination we will continue to see success for the next 155 years!

How do you feel that your ASCE involvement has benefited from this team mentality?

 

Last week I was in Finland for the 8th International Symposium on Cold Region Development (ISCORD) Conference. ASCE was a partner in this ISCORD symposium, one of a series of international events bringing together the scientific and business sectors, as well as governments and administrators of cold regions to exchange information. The larger purpose is to advance technical, economic and social progress on the cold region issues.

While I was there, I offered remarks on the subject of global warming and its effect on cold regions. Several people presented data on this issue, mostly compiled in the last 50 years. I think the data shows that as engineers, we need to anticipate and prepare for the changes global warming can bring. If, over time, the sea level rises by a foot, areas like the Barrier Islands and the coastal marshes off New Orleans will face new challenges. As the world becomes warmer, a whole host of changes will affect our profession in a variety of ways. Changes in ocean currents and flows may have implications for the temperatures of some coastline cities, like San Francisco. The economic environment for fishermen and lobstermen may shift as the supply diminishes under different conditions. New national security issues may arise. What it all comes down to is the need for us to take climate change seriously. We may need to anticipate change and be more flexible in how we adapt to change and not think of ourselves as square pegs that can only fit in one size and shape hole.

How can we as engineers better anticipate, prepare and adapt to these changes when we cannot really predict the magnitude?