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President-Elect Objectives: Nomination Statement of Dr. Craig Lake

June 2023

It is both humbling and gratifying to be selected by the Nominating Committee of the Canadian Geotechnical Society (CGS) for consideration as our Society’s next President. I accept this nomination and if elected, will work to serve the Society as President-elect during 2024, and for a two-year term as President commencing January 2025.

 

I was first exposed to the CGS in the mid 90s as a graduate student at the University of Western Ontario. Although memories become faded over time, I do remember those London CGS chapter meetings to be a great way for a young geotechnical engineer to network and better understand the profession. My first CGS conference was 1997 in Ottawa. My PhD supervisor at the time, Kerry Rowe, gave several of his graduate students a budget to attend this conference. With a big white van, eight of us took off down the 401 and had a memorable time. As interesting as it was, it was also an intimidating experience. My first technical presentation to an audience of some of the “heavy hitters” of the CGS elicited both fear and satisfaction. The chance to later network with these people is still etched in my mind. I had the chance to meet Dr. Geoff Meyerhof at the conference for the first time, even though I had attended the Technical University of Nova Scotia as an undergrad. I mustered up enough nerve to introduce myself and realized that he was very kind and encouraging, as were all others I met at the conference. The conference began my life-long association with the CGS.  

As a geotechnical practitioner, newly out of graduate school, I quickly came to appreciate the benefits of the CGS as a young professional. Volunteering with the local section in Halifax allowed me the chance to arrange technical talks from experts across the country. This technical aspect of the society, combined with a national networking opportunity, truly interested me. I realized that the CGS provided members with a framework to organize activities that interested them on a local level yet collaborate with national colleagues. Volunteering for the 1st Canadian Young Geotechnical Engineers and Geoscientists Conference in 2004 in Quebec City solidified this personal belief system. I realized that the CGS was a great way to spend my volunteer time and it has continued to fuel my professional and personal development. A commitment to volunteering is what makes our society strong.

 

I have enjoyed getting to know how the CGS operates over the past 25+ years. Some of the positions I have undertaken related to the CGS include: Nova Scotia Section Chair, Co-Chair of the GeoHalifax Conference in 2009, Section Representative on the Executive Committee, Chair of the Geoenvironmental Division, and currently VP Technical. I have also had the pleasure of interacting with many members of the CGS through my past role as Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Geotechnical Journal. At Dalhousie University, I have experience as Department Head, having led a group of 20 academics and 250 students in civil, environmental and mining engineering programs. Here I attempted to continually improve research and teaching outcomes while also ensuring financial accountability. I also have a strong understanding of our engineering profession as the current chair of the Board of Examiners of Engineers Nova Scotia. Although one never feels truly qualified to lead a rich organization such as the CGS, I do believe some of my experience could be useful to the CGS as President. Having served with many past Presidents in the CGS, I have learned that each person can bring their own unique perspectives to this volunteer role, and I hope to do so from my view of the Atlantic, here in Halifax.

 

I expect 2025-26 to be a period of continuous improvement and change for the CGS. My general objectives as President for 2025-26 are: 1) continued focus on convincing young people on the benefits of joining and volunteering with our society, 2) continued focus on improving the overall diversity of our society, 3) continued focus on developing a sustainable model for updating and renewal of the Canadian Foundation Engineering Manual (CFEM), and, 4) managing change within the CGS organisation.

One of the reasons that the CGS has been a successful organization over the years has been a spirit of volunteerism and a sense of community. I truly believe that we must continue to recruit young people to the CGS to become not only members of our great society but also future leaders of the CGS. As I look back to my own experience, it is this sense of community that I am hoping to help instill in our new, diverse membership. The CFEM is a great example of how a community of volunteers has come together to deliver something to be proud of as a society.

In summary, I would be honoured to serve as your next CGS president. As current CGS President Rob Kenyon has reiterated to me, this is a role that requires teamwork from many different CGS members. Hence, I am looking forward to hearing as many member opinions as possible on how we can all work together in the years to come to keep our society thriving.







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