BACKGROUND
Asian Civil Engineering Coordinating Council
On the 19th and 20th of February 1998, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE) and the Japan Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE) jointly hosted a successful conference, the First International Civil Engineering Conference in the Asian Region, in Manila. More than 700 people participated in this seminal event. This conference responded to the need to exchange civil engineering ideas and information as was demonstrated by its success. Based on this productive event, the three organizations agreed, in concept, to continue to conduct the subsequent Asian conferences on a triennial basis. The conference is called the Civil Engineering Conference in the Asian Region (CECAR). The Second CECAR was held in April 2001 in Tokyo. The Third CECAR was held in August 2004 in Seoul and the Fourth CECAR Meeting will be held in Taipei in June 2007. The Civil Engineering Conference in the Asian Region is a unique opportunity to discover some of the most important innovations in civil engineering technology, research and development. Leaders in civil engineering research and technology from Asian countries, America and others will come to Taipei in June 2007 to learn about and help shape the future of civil engineering design and construction and business practices.
The three societies also agreed to create an organization that is called the Asian Civil Engineering Coordinating Council (ACECC). The purpose of the ACECC is to schedule Asian forums where worldwide members of the civil engineering profession may jointly develop programs of coordination and mutual action in designated matters affecting the interests of civil engineers and related professions. The ACECC, through separate planning and technical committees, identifies and develops methods that facilitate the discussion of worldwide civil engineering technology needs, issues, and practices for the early decades of the 21st century. The members are working together to: exchange information and data; establish partnerships leading to maximizing their technological resources; identify appropriate methods that shall meet the changing future needs of the civil engineering profession; and seek ways to better transfer the findings from future conferences into practice.
In response to the invitation to participate in the ACECC, the Korean Society of Civil Engineers (KSCE), the Chinese Institute of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering (CICHE) joined with the above-mentioned three societies and the ACECC was formally established on September 27, 1999 in Tokyo. The Vietnam Federation of Civil Engineering Associations (VIFCEA, formerly “Vietnam Construction Association”), Engineers Australia (EA, formerly “ the Institution of Engineers, Australia”) and the Mongolian Association of Civil Engineers (MACE) joined ACECC in April, 2000, October, 2001 and December 2004 respectively. Up to now, ACECC consists of eight members including the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the Chinese Institute of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering (CICHE), Engineers Australia (EA), the Japan Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE), the Korean Society of Civil Engineers (KSCE), the Mongolian Association of Civil Engineers (MACE), the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE) and the Vietnam Federation of Civil Engineering Associations (VIFCEA).
Although the ACECC mainly consists of the civil engineering societies/institutions in the Asian region, it should be noted that membership is open to worldwide professional organizations that comply with the criteria established in the Constitution and By-laws.
