ECF manifesto - Construction 2050 - Building tomorrow’s Europe today
Construction stakeholders believe that the Construction 2020 initiative should be reinforced in order to fully achieve its ambitions, aimed at supporting the construction sector’s adaptation to key emerging challenges and to promote the sustainable competitiveness of the sector. To this end, major European construction representatives have united, to stress their commitment to the extension of the existing programme in the form of the “Construction 2050: Building tomorrow’s Europe today” initiative. This comprehensive framework should be fully embraced by all actors in the construction ecosystem, Member States and European institutions. Building on the results of the current Construction 2020 initiative, this new framework should be based on the following principles:
- A specific targeted approach to construction because the sector is at the crossroads of different value chains and its unique nature requires a unique approach
- An adaptable policy framework to address the evolving construction ecosystem and the transformation of the industry
- A holistic approach towards policy making in order to implement coherent and balanced policies and legislation
- A strong partnership between the European institutions, the Member States and construction social partners and stakeholders to steer the transformation of the sector with the most adequate policies and tools.
President Mineiro closes Ljubljiana's World Construction Forum
Last week engineers from all over the world gathered in Ljubljana for the World Construction Forum 2019, which was organized by the Slovenian Chamber of Engineers and Faculty of Civil and geodetic Engineering of University of Ljubljana in partnership with World Federation of Engineering Organisations (WFEO) and the World Council of Civil Engineers (WCCE) under patronage of UNESCO and his excellency, Mr Borut Pahor, the president of the Republic of Slovenia.
President Mineiro as co-organizer of the event participated in the closing ceremony where he addressed the need to focus on a resource efficient construction process, enabling circular economy through project's lifecycle analysis with focusing in the infrastructure's decommission.
Carlos Mineiro Aires, New WCCE President
Eng. Carlos Mineiro Aires has been appointed President on September 21st, 2018. He took over the presidency of the World Council of Civil Engineers (WCCE) during its 13th General Assembly to be held in 2018. Mr. Mineiro, a worldwide recognized engineering professional from Portugal will serve a three year term for the period 2019-2021. Carlos Mineiro suceeds Alfonso Gonzalez, Mexican Engineer.
He is current President of the Portuguese Ordem dos Engenheiros, the Portuguese engineering chamber. His areas of expertise are water resource management and international ccoperation issues. Civil Engineer (1985). Born in Lisbon (Portugal), age 53 years, holds a brilliant academic record, culminating in his MSc Civil Engineering, in Instituto Superior Técnico de Lisboa.

68th ECCE General Meeting and Global Engineering Congress
The 68th ECCE General Meeting was held on 22nd –23rd October 2018, in London, U.K., hosted by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). This meeting has been held in parallel with the Global Engineering Congress (GEC) that was organized as part of the ICE 200 bicentenary programme, the 50th anniversary of WFEO and the UK Government’s Year of Engineering. The GEC was organized in association with the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the Canadian Society of Civil Engineers (CSCE), the European Council of Civil Engineers (ECCE) and the Commonwealth Engineers’ Council. The GEC and the 68th ECCE General Meeting have been also marked as the summarizing events of the ECCE initiative to designate the year 2018 as the European Year of Civil Engineers (EYCE).
Aristodimos (Aris) Chatzidakis, New President of the European Council of Civil Engineers (ECCE)
Aris Chatzidakis is the New President of the European Council of Civil Engineers. He took over Presidency of ECCE on 23rd October 2018, during the 68th ECCE General Meeting, that was held in London, UK. Aris Chatzidakis will serve a three year term for the Period 2018 – 2021. Aris Chatzidakis had been appointed ECCE Vice President/ President Elect on 22nd October 2016, during the 64th ECCE General Meeting in Athens, Greece.
Aris Chatzidakis is a Civil Engineer. He graduated, in 1974, from the National Technical University of Athens. During 1975-1976, he attended the post-graduate course (D.E.A.) “Aménagement du Territoire”, at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’ Hydraulique, at the University of Grenoble. He speaks English, and can communicate in French and Italian.
Echoes of the 13th General Assembly of WCCE
WCCE’s 13th General Assembly of the World Council of Civil Engineers was held in Sucre, Bolvia from 19 to 21 september 2018, organized by the Colegio de Ingenieros Civiles de Bolvia - CICB, in parallel with its International Congress in Civil Engineering. The Assembly was welcome by CICB's President Álvaro Chrruarin. Attendance at WCCE activities by WCCE delegates was enriched by the attendance of UPADI's President Mª Teresa Dalenz Zapata. In this Assembly, Portuguese engineer Carlos Mineiro Aires took over the presidency from Mexican Engineer Alfonso González, who becomes immediate Past President. Past President Tomás Sancho joins WCCE's Senior Advisory Board.
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