Fall 2017 PEG

Registrar & CEO's Message experience examination, and we are among the first engineering regulators in Canada to develop and adopt the system. Here’s something that’s not widely known about our Registration Department. We also look after application and registration processing for potential Members of two sister associations to our north — Engineers Yukon, and the Northwest Territories and Nunavut Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists. Membership approval lies with the regulators themselves, but administering applications and membership is not economical for them, because of their small size and limited resources. Which Canadian regulator of engineering and geoscience was the first to institute a mandatory program of continuing professional development (CPD)? Hint: this is not a trick question. APEGA was, indeed, the first. In the interests of improving our protection of the health, safety, and welfare of the public, we launched the mandatory APEGA CPD program in 1997. Most of our regulatory peers in engineering and geoscience in Canada have followed suit, using the Alberta program as a model. The principle is simple and the reasoning beyond reproach: to be an APEGA professional, whose ethical responsibility, by definition, it is to serve the public interest, you must stay current in a variety of different areas. To do that requires that you build a program of lifelong learning into your schedule, report it to APEGA, and produce detailed records when asked. We live in a time when knowledge grows unrelentingly, so CPD is even more important now than it was 20 years ago. SETTING UP APEGA FOR ITS NEXT CENTURY We have concluded the fifth round of consultations with Members and Permit Holders in the first major revamping of our legislation since 1981. There’s still some heavy lifting to do on our part, but nothing symbolizes the next century of APEGA more than this thoughtful, thorough, and engaging review of the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act and General Regulation , and APEGA’s bylaws. Since 2012, more than 6,000 individuals have taken part in the process, through surveys, face-to-face A LEADER IN MANDATORY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

APEGA

meetings, webinars, emails, and video conferences. A champions collaborative made up of Members representing APEGA branches ensured that the conversation reached every corner of the province. We have now forwarded recommendations for changes to the provincial government, although there are outstanding issues that we continue to address. THE PEOPLE Ultimately, APEGA is about its people, and that will be as true in our next century as it is in this one. I’ll start with the 135 or so staff members I lead. I cannot overstate how important their support is. From the wise counsel and leadership of my Executive Team to the ongoing, open, and honest dialogue other APEGA employees have so willing embarked upon, their commitment to improving our service to the public and Members is unwavering. Members, staff, and the public rely on the excellent work of our volunteers, ranging from those of you who sit on Council and the various statutory boards, such as the Board of Examiners and the Discipline Committee, to those who help make science and math fun and interesting to Alberta young people. Your contribution is priceless, but if we were to put a price on it, it is worth millions of dollars. You ensure that the people who know our professions best are the ones making the decisions and recommendations necessary to regulate and represent our professions properly. We are, in other words, a 21st-century version of what the engineers who proposed APEGA in the first place envisioned. They would be proud of what we have become — and what we are becoming. The nature of a regulator is such that not all Mem- bers will be pleased with some of the actions APEGA needs to take. However, we will always do our best to do this professionally and with the full intent of protect- ing the public — a duty and necessity of self-regulation. On a final personal note, I consider it a great privilege to serve our valued Members and staff. I’m excited about our shared future of continuing to work together for the public good.

Questions or comments? Registrar_CEO@apega.ca

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