The World Engineers Summit was held from September 11 to 13, 2013 in Singapore. The CEO of the Morakot Typhoon Post-Disaster Reconstruction Council of the Executive Yuan, Dr. Jenn-Chuan Chern , was invited on Sep 13 to deliver a keynote speech on “Experiences with disaster relief and management systems for reconstructed communities in the wake of the Morakot Typhoon Disaster”. International engineers and scholars who attended the speech praised the achievements of the Post-Morakot reconstruction process. The accumulated experiences of Taiwan in the field of reconstruction turned into a highlight of the conference and also stimulated and strengthened international exchanges.

The Reconstruction Council of the Executive Yuan points out that during the 2013 WFEO general assembly conference, meetings of individual commissions of WFEO were convened on Sep 9-10. “The World Engineers Summit” was held from Sep 11-13, and a General WFEO Meeting was organized on Sep 14-15. The Institution of Engineers Singapore (IES) organized the World Engineers Summit, which lasted three days. The summit’s theme was “Innovative and sustainable solutions to climate change”. Discussions of relevant issues were conducted and the “2013 International Green Building Conference” and the World Engineering Expo were held simultaneously to the conference events. Mr. Teo Chee Hean, Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore, lead a delegation of government representatives to attend the conference. Ms. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO delivered an address and served as the Emcee of the Summit and the Sustainable Leaders Forum. Dr. Jenn-Chuan Chern, CEO of the Reconstruction Council, and Mr. Xin-Cheng Ye, Deputy Director of the Environmental Protection Administration were invited to attend the General Meeting and deliver keynote reports. Dr. Chern spoke on the social management system for disaster relief and reconstruction, which has been established by Taiwan after the Morakot Disaster, while Mr. Ye introduced system integration policies in Taiwan as well as experiences in the field of technological, educational, and environmental governance. The conference participants lauded and discussed the achievements and response strategies of the Taiwanese government in the face of climate change and both speakers received enthusiastic feedback. The exchanges of Taiwan and this professional international engineering organization in the field of disaster relief technologies are deeply indicative of future developments.

In his speech, Dr. Jenn-Chuan Chern stated that the Morakot reconstruction work abides by the principles of national land conservation and disaster relief and prevention. The goal is to gradually rebuild infrastructure facilities, construct permanent housing, the promotion of various industries in the reconstruction areas as well as care for the lives and livelihood of local residents. The reconstruction process in Taiwan is characterized by efficiency, respect, and innovation. He pointed out that the post-disaster reconstruction process not only aims to provide the disaster stricken population with new homes but rather create colorful sustainable communities that are safe, humane, and take account of indigenous  culture and lifestyles. Another goal is the establishment of a social management system, which is characterized by a high disaster relief awareness to be able to cope with changes and challenges of the external environment.

At the end of his speech, Dr. Chern emphasized that the experiences of the Post-Morakot construction process indicate that Taiwan has already established an initial version of a social management system, which effectively integrates the disaster relief, prevention and reconstruction capabilities of the government, NGOs, and enterprises. International business, government, and academic experts in the field of natural disasters attended a meeting organized by the Society for Social Management Systems in 2012. The participants discussed the issue of how to establish a social management system with disaster relief, prevention, and reconstruction capabilities. They also discussed how to promote an international mutual aid mechanism to minimize the great risks and losses associated with complex disasters.
 

An Arabian female engineer attends the 2013 World Engineers Summit

Group photo of Dr. Jenn-Chuan Chern, CEO of the Reconstruction Council (fourth from the right) and members of the representative delegation

Group photo of Dr. Jenn-Chuan Chern, CEO of the Reconstruction Council (fourth from the left) and WFEO President Mr. Adel Al Kharafi (fifth from the left) accompanied by deleg