DRIVING ALBERTA FORWARD
APEGA’s new vision statement puts into words what we, as a regulator, and the province’s engineering and geoscience professionals have been doing for more than a century: Driving Alberta forward with courage and innovation . It’s a simple but powerful declaration that articulates where we’re heading and how we’ll get there. For me, courage is about challenging conventional thinking , imagining new possibilities, and doing what’s right—even when it might not be easy or popular. Innovation is a mindset that drives big ideas forward from concept to completion.
To ensure the continuity and sustainability of Council itself, we also created descriptions outlining the roles and responsibilities for our president, president-elect, vice- president, and past-president executive positions. These descriptions will provide newly elected executives with knowledge of their roles prior to their first day, resulting in more efficient and effective governance. INCREASING THE PROFILE OF OUR PROFESSIONS I was fortunate to travel across the province visiting APEGA’s 10 branches, meeting with registrants, permit holders, and our branch volunteers. It was an opportunity to share APEGA’s initiatives with them and—equally important—hear their feedback and suggestions. Bringing the industry perspective to APEGA was a key priority for me. I had the opportunity to tour some amazing engineering and geoscience projects in local communities. Among these developments were a vital new commuter bridge in Peace River, an innovative and picturesque water-treatment plant on the banks of Cold Lake, and a massive potato-processing facility in Coaldale that uses state-of-the-art sensors. APEGA professionals contribute significantly to Alberta’s economic success and greatly enhance our quality of life. Yet, we aren’t always front of mind when public decisions are made involving engineering or geoscience. Another of my priorities was to highlight to policy-making officials our membership’s expertise. It’s important to have their technical and project knowledge around the table when new initiatives— especially those that impact all Albertans—are being developed. DRIVING ALBERTA FORWARD I started volunteering with APEGA’s Central Alberta Branch early in my career, so serving as APEGA’s president was a truly gratifying, full-circle experience. I believe it’s important to put your hand up to lead or volunteer. I see examples of APEGA registrants doing this every day, as courageous innovative leaders and as volunteers whose dedication and enthusiasm help make APEGA’s regulatory and professional sustainability work possible. We are doing our part to make sure professional engineers, professional geoscientists, APEGA, and Alberta are set for the future.
Courage drives innovation. Innovation takes courage.
Professional engineers and geoscientists have long been courageous, innovative leaders. We use our creativity and resourcefulness—often doing more with less—to find solutions to society’s biggest challenges. We continually seek new and better ways to make our lives easier, safer, and healthier, and to create a more environmentally sustainable world. BUILDING A RISK MINDSET APEGA is also taking decisive steps to drive Alberta forward. The risks facing APEGA and our registrants are complex and constantly shifting. Although we don’t always know what’s going to happen next, it is within our power to look ahead and prepare for any challenges that might affect our regulatory functions and our registrants. One of my top priorities as APEGA’s 103rd president was to ensure Council understood and incorporated strategic risk management into our culture and everyday decision-making processes. I’m referring to risks such as preparing for the emergence of new engineering and geoscience fields, such as robotics and artificial intelligence, and ensuring APEGA has the tools and ability to efficiently regulate them. Over the past year, Council: • created risk-appetite statements that defined the amount and type of risk APEGA is prepared to accept •established a Strategy and Risk Committee to integrate risk and strategy into Council discussions as we look to the future of APEGA and our professions
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