March 2009

National Engineering Summit:  Leading a Canadian Future

Chantal Guay, P. Eng., ing., M. Env., CEO, Engineers Canada

From May 19 to 21, we will be part of an important event in the history of Canada's engineering profession. Taking place in Montréal, the National Engineering Summit 2009 - Leading a Canadian Future: The New Engineer in Society - is a first of its kind event for the profession. Never before have we come together with other sectors to develop a vision and a roadmap for the future of the engineering profession and what it can do for Canadian society. 

This great, national initiative is a significant moment for us to develop our future directions, and I am deeply committed to this project. Engineers Canada joined other leading national engineering organizations, through the Canadian Engineering Leadership Forum, to work on this summit for a positive outcome to benefit all Canadians. 

The inherent, added value of the summit is that we are not alone in the process. We are currently working with the Leadership Forum partner organizations to develop the summit, which will see professional engineers dialoguing and working with professionals from the health, environment, infrastructure and industrial sectors to develop the vision and roadmap. 

The goal for the future is a vibrant engineering community that is inspired to make dedicated contributions towards a superior quality of life and improved societal development in Canada. The roadmap will be the plan to get us there. Our constituent members and Canada's professional engineers will benefit from a profession that will have a stronger vision to work with, and a stronger voice to be better heard by the public, industry and government decision-makers. 

I believe the National Engineering Summit to be of interest not only to all members of the engineering profession, but also to engineering students, members of industry and government, and all Canadians interested in the prosperity of our nation. As Canadians, we owe it to ourselves to attend the summit. Your participation at the summit is what will make it a success. More information, including how to register, can be found at www.engineeringsummit.ca 

With the planning and execution of the summit, there is also an opportunity for Engineers Canada to look beyond the boundaries of the organization as it reviews its strategic plan. The summit's resulting vision will provide us with an all-encompassing perspective of the profession's future, one that can be put to good use as we look internally to our organization's future. I will share more information on Engineers Canada's strategic plan review process in my upcoming CEO message. 

For now, I look forward to the results of the summit, which will lead us in a direction of a more prosperous future for Canada.

Note: The Canadian Engineering Leadership Forum has representatives from: Engineers Canada; The Association of Canadian Engineering Companies; The Canadian Academy of Engineering; The Canadian Federation of Engineering Students; The Engineering Institute of Canada; and, The National Council of Deans of Engineering and Applied Science

© Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Newfoundland and Labrador