Civil engineers are instrumental in managing the threats to today’s society posed by unsustainable development and man made climate change.
Their expertise is vital in recognising the opportunities to mitigate and adapt to ever-increasing hazards that we face locally, nationally and globally.
The NE region is currently at the forefront of a number of sustainability issues including addressing the regional impact of climate change, renewable energy, low carbon construction and the green economy.
ICE NE is now looking to recruit members to establish its sustainability expert panel to provide regional leadership and guidance on these issues.
The panel will be chaired by Kate Cairns, who has a wealth of experience in tackling sustainable development issues and has been a key player in the development and launch of CEEQUAL, the ICE-supported award and assessment tool for improving sustainability in civil engineering projects.
The panel’s remit will be to act as a regional advocate for sustainability and for mitigation and adaptation actions relating to climate change. It will;
■ Raise awareness of sustainability issues within civil engineering
■ Share knowledge and promote best practice
■ Help inform thinking on key issues
■ Respond to consultation documents from a regional perspective
■ Contribute to current debates
■ Engage with other relevant regional bodies
The panel will also be responsible for developing a strategic plan for the ICE Northeast region to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and ensure the overall sustainability of its own activities.
Kate is keen that “the panel will look to provide a service to members, other development professionals and the general public. Typical topics for the panel might include climate change, environmental management , low carbon construction, life cycle assessment, supply chain management, resource efficiency, energy, waste, landscaping, biodiversity, transport, water resources, social inclusion, corporate responsibility, human rights, bribery and corruption. It is clearly a wide remit, and we envisage some further expert panels being formed subsequently to look at individual topics.”
We invite interested members to submit their details, a brief summary of their experience and potential areas of contribution to ICENEsustainability@ice.org.uk.