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NZSSES Conference - Blueprints for Sustainable Infrastructure
9 Dec 2008
The New Zealand Society for Sustainability Engineering and Science announce their 3rd International Conference will be held 9-12 December 2008. The theme of the conference is Blueprints for Sustainable Infrastructure.
EARLYBIRD TICKETS CLOSING 1 OCTOBER.
Infrastructure provides the basic needs for society and, consequently, sustainable infrastructure systems are essential for the survival, health and wellbeing of a society. While this has been well recognized and there are many who are charged with managing societal infrastructure, there has been little recognition and understanding of the complex, interdependent and dynamic systems that comprise infrastructure.
To move towards sustainable infrastructure systems requires a greater understanding of the complexity of those systems, including their dependence on environmental systems and services, their interdependence on other infrastructure systems and on social, technical and economic systems, their dynamic behaviour over both time and space and the need for the services which they provide. Key to this understanding is an interdisciplinary approach, involving not only multiple disciplines of engineering but also environmental and social scientists and which encompasses both a local and a global perspective.
The Conference will present some of the most recent achievements in sustainable infrastructure development. New products and processes, new systems, and new thinking in the field will be showcased by our keynote speakers, and in our parallel paper sessions. We will hold panel discussions on the problems and successes, and present Practicums offering design and methodology models.
KEYNOTE SPEAKERRS confirmed:
Dr Jean Venables OBE FREng. of Crane Environmental, England. Among Dr Venables' other credentials she is Chairman of the Thames Estuary Partnership and Chairman of the Expert Panel for the Thames Estuary 2100 Project.
Dr Peter Newman is Professor of City Policy and Director of the Institute for Sustainability and Technology Policy at Murdoch University. He is also Chair of the Western Australian Sustainability Roundtable advising the Premier on how to implement the State Sustainability Strategy.
Prof. Terry Collins is the Thomas Lord Professor of Chemistry at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU). Professor Collins is one of the founders of the field of Green Chemistry.
Jeanette Fitzsimons, Co-leader, New Zealand Green Party
Prof. Peter Guthrie, Centre for Sustainable Development, University of Cambridge.
Prof. Jorge Vanegas CHUD, Texas A&M University, USA, will return to present a key practicum on Modelling for a Sustainable Community.
Emeritus Prof Ian Lowe, Griffiths University, Queensland.
Website: http://www.nzsses.auckland.ac.nz/conference