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La Société canadienne
de géotechnique
The Canadian
Geotechnical Society
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La Société canadienne de géotechnique
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The Canadian Geotechnical Society
The Canadian
Geotechnical
Society
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Message from the President

Rob Kenyon, President of the Canadian Geotechnical Society

Winter 2023

 

Dear CGS Members,

 

I prepare this message as we approach the end of 2023, following such a successful and enjoyable 76th Annual Canadian Geotechnical Conference. The snow has started to fly in many parts of Canada, meaning it is time to reflect on the year past, and to be thankful for all the successes the CGS has enjoyed in 2023. 

 

My previous messages reflected on some of the activities undertaken by CGS on your behalf, but it is worth summarizing some of those initiatives and achievements now that we are at year end.  As Ian Moore expressed in his last message as CGS President, the position of President should perhaps be renamed “Volunteer in Chief”. The President stirs the pot and acts as the face of CGS but there is a tremendous group of volunteers who make up both your Executive Committee and the Board of Directors. This past year the Executive Committee consisted of Craig Lake, VP Technical and President-Elect (2024); Pooneh Maghoul, VP Finance; Eliane Cabot, VP Communications and Member Services; Leanne McLaren/Vincent Castonguay, Young Professionals Representative; Wes Saunders, Sections Representative; and Jennifer Day, Divisions and Committees Representative.  The Executive Committee has been so ably supported by Michel Aubertin, Executive Director; and Lisa Reny, Emily Fournier, Bill Reny, and Lesia Beznaczuk of Karma-Link Management Services. Highlights of the past year are summarized below. More detailed individual annual reports are found at cgs.ca/annual-report_php.

 

Craig Lake reported the successful publishing and initial sales of the Canadian Foundation Engineering Manual, 5th Edition (2023) at GeoSaskatoon 2023. The Manual is now available for sale at:    https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/9780920505502

 

Once there, CGS members will be directed back to the CGS website to log in and obtain the CGS members price of $299. This massive upgrade to the Manual is digital only, some 888 pages long, and contains five new chapters with significant modifications to others. Please pull out your credit cards, log in, and enjoy the ease of using this new edition of the Manual.  An early ad hoc committee has also been formed to begin plans for translation of the Manual into our second official language. Please contact Craig Lake at vptech@cgs.ca if you are interested in joining this important initiative.

 

The Divisions and Committees under the guidance of Jennifer Day have been particularly busy this past year and I highlight only some of their initiatives. The Young Professional Committee (Kshama Roy, Chair) established a trial mentoring program, a trial LinkedIn Group, the Canadian Geotechnical Student Competition, as well as monthly technical webinar series and quarterly professional development webinar series. CGS, under the leadership of the Professional Practice Committee (Sean MacEoin, Kent Bannister) has entered into an exciting new Memorandum of Understanding with the Geoprofessional Business Association (GBA). The GBA is a preferred resource to consulting geoprofessionals, providing risk mitigation, business optimization, and leadership development tools. Practicing members and consulting firms are encouraged to learn more at www.geoprofessional.org.  This Committee is also developing a database of case study papers from the last ten years of CGS Conferences. The Cold Regions Division is actively planning for ICOP 2024, the 12th International Conference on Permafrost, in Whitehorse from June 16-20, 2024. The conference, co-chaired by Ryley Beddoe and Lukas Arenson, is being organized jointly with the Canadian Permafrost Association. More information can be found at: https://event.fourwaves.com/icop2024/pages. Meanwhile, the Geohazards Committee is actively planning for GeoHazards 9, chaired by Renato Macciotta and Corey Froese.

 

Eliane Cabot has stirred a number of new initiatives this past year including EDI Webinars, Webinars for International Women’s Day, a Webinar for Women in Engineering, a Task Force to address EDI issues within the operation of CGS, and a Task Force to review and upgrade the CGS Website (with the active support of Vincent Castonguay and other members of the Membership Committee). CGS continues to explore the geotechnical use of professional social media platforms such as LinkedIn.

 

The finances of CGS, under the leadership of Pooneh Maghoul, remain in excellent shape, without an increase in membership fees in 2024. The Covid period has been extremely challenging to manage financially due to the inherent uncertainties during lockdown periods, the unknown response once we returned to in-person events, and the inflation we have all been experiencing in our daily lives. CGS membership has rebounded significantly from the Covid lockdown period and is near historic highs, as of this report. 

 

This year’s CGS Conference, GeoSaskatoon 2023, was a huge success, thanks to the outstanding efforts of conference co-chairs Ian Fleming and Terry Werbovetski, and all the other members of the organizing committee, supported by dedicated professionals at VenueWest. Attendance topped 700 delegates who enjoyed a very excellent social program, a superb lineup of keynote speakers, informative technical sessions, and of course our annual Awards Banquet. For me, particular highlights included the RM Hardy Keynote Address given by Murray Fredlund, the Legget Medal Luncheon honouring (posthumously) Saskatchewan’s own Lee Barbour, the invigorating table discussions at the Women in Geotechnique breakfast coordinated by Jean Hutchinson and Vanessa Heilman, the CGS Colloquium presentation by Pooneh Maghoul (Geotechnical Engineering in Human Settlement on the Moon), with Del Fredlund giving the Heritage Lunch presentation on Journey into Unsaturated Soil Mechanics. This conference might mark the first time that father and son have each given keynote lectures at a CGS conference. We would be remiss if we did not take the time to acknowledge the support of the conference exhibitors and sponsors.  This conference is possible because of your participation and support. 

 

Finally, the Society has been informed by Michel Aubertin that 2024 will be his last year as the CGS Executive Director.  For ten years, Michel has filled this position admirably, representing the corporate memory, continuity and stability of a volunteer Society, where leadership changes every two years. On a personal level, I say what great service he has provided these past ten years. Thank you so much, Michel. 

 

In closing, I do hope that each of you has been able to pause during the festive season and reflect on the good things both in in our learned Society and our world at large. I look forward to meeting all of you at GeoMontréal in September 2024.   

 

Rob Kenyon