» Issue 7: Autumn 2007

Presidents' Report

Peter Garratt

AS I write this, a quarter of my term as president of the CGCA has already sped past. Given the transient nature of the presidency (relative to the tenure of those dedicated officers who run the show on a day-to-day basis) it is helpful if there is continuity of opinion between successive presidents on the key issues that face us. I am in complete agreement with my predecessor, John Banyard, on the overriding challenge of ensuring that the organisation is seen to be relevant and useful by its younger members.

With this in mind, the speaker at the president’s evening was an engineer who has successfully made the transition to head a leading business consultancy. He spoke of the great opportunities presented by today’s global economy for those engineers with the breadth of knowledge and experience to rise to the top of the corporate tree. Imperial is striving to produce these polymaths and CGCA must strive to satisfy their needs as alumni via a dynamic and responsive association, treading carefully between its history and traditions and the imperative of constant change to meet current and future needs.

We are fortunate in having a new, strong and dynamic CGCU team. Tristan Sherliker, the Union president, has already come up with some excellent ideas as to how we can define and navigate this path. A further enormous asset is the unique insight brought by Dame Julia Higgins, our senior vice president, based on her experience as Engineering Faculty principal.

One of the issues the Association faces is the dearth of younger members actively involved as officers. As with many similar organisations, day-to-day management is shouldered by a very committed few so it is essential not only to spread the load but groom successors for key executive roles. (See plea on page five). To meet these requirements, we need to order our affairs in such a way that the role of a CGCA officer is fulfilling and enjoyable. In my experience, the burden of bureaucracy can be eased greatly by humour, camaraderie and intellectual challenge.

CGCA can and should have something to say on the key issues of the day, especially those global challenges that can be met only with the help of technical insight and innovation. In this context, the renewable energy theme of this issue of Imperial Engineer could not be more relevant, and I am pleased to have had the opportunity to complement the traditional president’s report with a feature article which I hope you will find interesting.

Kurt Budge

RSM HAS changed significantly over recent years, but it remains very much alive, thanks principally to the evergreen vibrant student body, whose energy and commitment uphold the values and traditions that have made RSM a fundamental part of Imperial College’s history and today’s fabric.

RSM may no longer be the bricks and mortar institution it once was, yet it now stands as a key partner in the Faculty of Engineering. No doubt there are some RSM alumni who sit and wonder what the RSM constitutes and what the RSMA actually does. Let me reassure you that it still produces graduate associates of the RSM, in Geology, Geophysics, Geosciences, Petroleum Engineering, Petroleum Geosciences, Material Sciences and Engineering, as well as providing PhD opportunities. In addition, the RSMA is firmly recognised by Imperial College, and the committee is supporting many of the Centenary events that are taking place this year, including attendance during Her Majesty the Queen’s recent visit to College, the Rector’s Guildhall lecture and participating in the forum ‘Global sustainability: the future for engineering education’.

As I take over stewardship of the RSMA from Roger Clegg, I follow a succession of presidents who have cemented the RSM and RSMA in Imperial College’s future. The challenge rests with me and the RSMA Committee to grow the RSM’s influence and relevance for all its stakeholders – industry, students, faculty, alumni and Imperial College.

Given the smaller numbers of graduates from the RSM, the question of the Association’s sustainability needs to be tackled. The RSMA committee will, over the coming months, be contacting alumni to seek their views on what the RSMA needs to do to meet their needs. We will also be engaging with recent graduates and students in their final year to encourage them to become members, if not already, and to contribute in whatever way they can to the RSMA’s work.

In this new academic year, the RSMA committee will be working very hard to build for a stronger and more effective RSMA. In our endeavours, we need RSM alumni to support and engage with us, starting with keeping your subscriptions up-to-date, and actively communicating with us on your thoughts and ideas. Finally, wherever you are in the world, please remember, in the immortal words of The Mines Song, we are all ‘Mighty works of God’ as Royal Mining students, past and present, so from where I stand the future for the RSM and RSMA is bright!