Presidential Blog: Planning for the future
20th August 2024
The latest thoughts and updates from IChemE President Mark Apsey MBE.
In my initial Presidential Blog, I spoke about how interesting and exciting my first month as IChemE President had been. Interest and excitement have certainly continued in abundance over the last month, with activities focused on championing the importance of our profession in meeting the grand global challenges and ensuring that our voice remains heard.
Firstly, following the election of the new UK government, I have written to incoming Ministers welcoming them to their roles and offering our support in relation to industry expertise and future skills. Not only did this allow us to raise the profile of the Institution at government level, but it has also highlighted the unique role that chemical engineering plays in supporting crucial policy areas including climate change, productivity and the transition towards net zero.
We will be presenting and discussing our 'Engineering a Sustainable World - the Chemical Engineering Challenge' report at a Parliamentary and Scientific Committee event on 10 September, drawing attention to how chemical engineers can help the government achieve its aims. With UK party conference season upon us, making an impression now could prove vital to influencing future policies.
Continuing the theme of making connections, I was delighted to represent IChemE at the recent Royal Society of Chemistry Summer Reception and had the pleasure of meeting their new President, Dr Annette Doherty OBE FRSC and CEO, Dr Helen Pain. Events like these are always a great opportunity for us to strengthen links with fellow organisations and build valuable relationships that will help to realise our vision of engineering a more sustainable world.
Looking ahead, we have a fun-packed autumn in store, with many exciting events to look forward to. Firstly, preparations are underway for the launch of our new virtual work experience platform, an interactive online tool allowing 14-18-year-olds to get a taste of various chemical engineering disciplines through a series of engaging online modules led by individuals in energy, food and drink, water and sanitation, and pharma and healthcare.
Generating our future talent pool is also key to our forthcoming Big Bang on Location event, to be held at our Rugby office on 14 November. Delivered in collaboration with EngineeringUK, this on-site pilot will give young people from local schools the opportunity to learn more about the many routes into chemical, biochemical and process engineering. The event will be attended by prominent employers from across the sector, joining us to help inspire the next generation into considering careers in STEM.
Finally, as we approach the tail-end of the year, I could not conclude without reference to our IChemE Global Awards, to be held in Manchester on 28 November. While entries are now closed for these prestigious accolades, which celebrate incredible chemical engineering achievements across the globe, there is still time to become a sponsor and associate your company with industry excellence. I hope very much to see you there.
Previous Presidential Blogs
July 2024 - An exciting first month
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