CIGR Newsletter No 50

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NEWS FROM THE PRESIDIUM

A Challenge for Agricultural Engineers1

Summary

This paper is a combination of several presentations that I have made in various parts of the world during the past year or two. It contains four parts:

· Trends in Agricultural Engineering

· Globalization of Agricultural Engineering

· The Role of CIGR

· A Challenge

This is an exciting time to be an agricultural engineer. Our profession is addressing great challenges facing humanity, such as ensuring an adequate and safe food supply for an expanding world population and managing and protecting the world’s vital water, soil, air, and energy resources. I firmly believe that the work of agricultural engineers is vital and that we are one of the key professions in world development. My perception, however, is that we have failed to articulate the vital nature of our work. The public is not interested in the nuts and bolts of our work. The public, especially the urban public including many politicians and policy makers, wants to know how the work of agricultural engineers helps people, how we contribute to the social, economic, and environmental betterment of humans around the world. There is no question in my mind that we do, in fact, help people through our contribution to food production; food quality and safety; food storage, processing, transp rt, packaging, and marketing; to a cleaner environment; improved water and air quality; and our many other diverse activities.

I challenge all agricultural engineers to emphasize our helping people when we describe our work. Think not nuts and bolts or the technical details of our work, not mathematical equations or computer models, but focus on how we help people—more and higher quality food, reduction of world poverty, help poor farmers raise their incomes, pollution control, resource conservation, a safer workplace, and reduced drudgery.

Never miss an opportunity to tell the world about your successes and the successes of your colleagues. We need to work hard to make the profession of agricultural engineering stronger and more viable so we can continue and expand the good work we are doing for people everywhere.

Trends in Agricultural Engineerng

Traditionally, agricultural engineering curricula/programs dealt with power and machinery, soil and water engineering, farm structures (and later, the environment within buildings), and farm electrification (and later, processing). During the past decade or two, a dramatic shift of emphasis has occurred in many agricultural engineering curricula/programs with reduced attention to power and machinery and many new programs added in biological engineering and pollution control. Areas of specialization now include wastewater management, water quality protection, air pollution abatement, waste utilization, natural resource conservation, sustainable production technologies, sensor development, biosystems engineering, ecological systems engineering, and so on.

Many if not most agricultural engineering programs in the universities have changed their department names to include words such as biological engineering, bioresource engineering, and food engineering.

Traditional programs have not disappeared, but clearly the trend is toward topics such as sensors for soil pH and nitrogen, for detecting smells, and fruit quality; automation and robots; precision agriculture; pollution control and maintenance of water and air quality. Development of edible films and biodegradable plastics has great potential to reduce use of polyethylene and other durable plastics. One unusual project for agricultural engineers is the development of a 5th grade (elementary school) teaching kit to help educate youth and their teachers about science in agriculture.

When the environment for a living species changes, that species must evolve or die. So it is for the profession of agricultural engineering. The needs of people around the world are changing, and our profession must evolve to meet emerging needs.

Globalization of Agricultural Engineering

Globalization of many businesses served by agricultural engineers is a reality, not a future dream. Dozens of examples could be given.2 Vincent Ercolano in ASEE’s journal, PRISM, wrote:

"The world’s economy is now intertwined to such a degree that professional interaction is seldom possible on any other but an international basis. This state of affairs will only intensify in the future years, requiring experts in innumerable fields to interact in depth with persons from other cultures. There has been a perception that science and technology are independent of culture and society, but the reality is that advances in communication and transportationsystems, the expansion of trade among nations, and changes in the international political order have been creating a world of growing interdependence. These emerging global cross-linkages pose new challenges for citizens in general, and engineers in particular, as they are confronted increasingly with problems whose analysis and solutions require an understanding of cultures and people beyond their native borders."

The Role of CIGR

CIGR is the Commission Internationale du Genie Rural (International Commission of Agricultural Engineering). CIGR was founded in 1930 in the French-speaking part of Belgium. In recent years CIGR has expanded to provide a global network for regional and national societies of agricultural engineering and now operates in some 50 countries. Check the CIGR website at www.ucd.ie/cigr/ for all the details about CIGR’s goals, structure, and programs. We maintain a General Secretariat at the University of Bonn headed by Secretary General, Professor Peter Schulze Lammers (lammers@uni-bonn.de).

Some Major CIGR Activities

· Handbook of Agricultural Engineering – More than 110 leading specialists from around the world authored this series of five volumes (2480 pages). You can obtain standard paper volumes or a compact disc from martin@asae.org.

· Agricultural Engineering International: The CIGR Journal of Scientific Research and Development – This peer reviewed journal operates electronically on the World Wide Web. You can view and print the articles and obtain instructions to authors at www.agen.tamu.edu/cigr/. There is no charge to access or to publish in this journal, thanks to the financial support of New Holland and the volunteer work of the Editor-in-Chief and the Editorial Board. Submit manuscripts or inquiries to ejournal@cigr.agen.tamu.edu.

· CIGR/FAO Global E-mail Network – A series of six list servs designed to connect people with mutual interests in agricultural engineering. Check the CIGR website for details. If you want to subscribe (no cost), send a message to mailserv@mailserv.fao.org leaving the subject line blank and entering a one-line message: SUBSCRIBE CIGR-FAO-name of list serv – L. The names to select are related to the six CIGR sections, i.e. LanWat, Build, EquipPlant, Energy, SystMngm, and ProcQual. You can subscribe to any or all of them and join the worldwide discussion groups.

· World Congress – The next one is in Tsukuba City, Japan, November 28-December 1, 2000. Check the website at http://bee2.en.a.u-tokyo.ac.jp/cigr2000/.

· Section Symposia – Scheduled periodically. Check the CIGR website for details.

CIGR welcomes all agricultural engineers to participate in our global programs designed to strengthen the profession and improve our services to benefit people everywhere.

A Challenge

I want to close with a challenge to all of us. Our profession is addressing many great issues facing people everywhere. But based on my extensive travel around the world and observations of the budget reductions that have been imposed on many agricultural engineering programs, I perceive that public support for our profession is not as strong as we would like. Why have these budget reductions occurred? Why? – One reason is that we have not communicated effectively in terms that the public and policy makers can understand, appreciate, and support. It seems to me that we have failed to articulate the vital nature of our work in terms of social, economic, and environmental benefits to people. We have not described the role of agricultural engineers with the same passion that environmentalists, sustainability advocates, animal rights groups, and others have used so effectively. Consequently, agricultural engineers are sometimes overlooked or short-changed by policy makers who set national priorities or budget planners who decide where public research and development funds are directed.

Too often we do not think beyond our individual micro studies. We are very good at what we do, perhaps too good. Too many of us are content to focus primarily on problems with well-defined boundaries that emphasize quantitative analysis. In general, we prefer to apply engineering in a very focused manner – in depth – with well-defined boundary conditions. Many of us become uncomfortable when faced with broad issues that are poorly defined and often unbounded, such as poverty, illiteracy, and unequal income distribution. We prefer to withdraw to our labs and develop and validate mathematical models that have clearly defined, finite boundaries. We can present our results with confidence based on mathematical principles, the laws of physics, thermodynamics and so on. And this type of work is important. We should be justifiably proud of our talents and accomplishments. But the technical aspect is only part of the picture, sometimes the easy part. Engineering should be used to help people, so social, economic, and environmental discussions cannot be ignored.

My challenge to you all is to look at the big picture – think globally and multidisciplinary. Look for ways to integrate with industry to facilitate technology transfer. Ask, "What are the major problems in the world today? How can we contribute to solutions?" Some big issues agricultural engineers can address include feeding an expanding population, improving income distribution so that everyone will have the purchasing power to afford a balanced and nutritious diet, natural resource conservation and efficient management, and creating a safer workplace.

I also challenge you to become more involved with policy issues and let administrators know about the benefits of your work to society and to ensure agricultural engineering is high on the research priorities list. Do not be shy in collecting more newspaper articles and television stories about your successes. Speak to community groups and to other organizations outside of the agricultural engineering profession. We need to collect examples of success stories of economic, social, and environmental benefits of our work – concrete examples documenting how people are better off as a result of the work of agricultural engineers. No one person or organization can do all of this – it is up to all of us to do these things to strengthen our profession and to expand our service to people everywhere.

Invitation to Participate

CIGR has the potential to have a major impact on the agricultural engineering profession globally. Our discipline faces many challenges, and we have many opportunities. The needs for agricultural engineering expertise are great but not always fully recognized.

If you wish to participate in this dynamic movement, send me your e-mail address and your subject matter interest.

As CIGR Past President O. Kitani wrote in his March 1997 editorial for ASAE Resource, "Ask not only what CIGR can do for you, but also what you can do for agricultural engineers (and the general public) around the world."

Bill A. Stout

President, CIGR, 1999/2000

Notes

1 Presented at the German VDI/MEG meetin in Braunschweig on October 7, 1999.

2 Contact the author for the complete paper giving many examples.

THE XIV MEMORIAL CIGR WORLD CONGRESS 2000

November 28 - December 1, 2000, Tsukuba, Japan

Sponsored by Science Council of Japan (SCJ), International Commission of Agricultural Engineering (CIGR). Organized by The Japan Association of International Commission of Agricultural Engineering (JAICAE), University of Tsukuba. In Cooperation with AAAE, ALIA, ASAE, EurAgEng and SEASAE.

TOPICS

The congress will focus on the following areas, and contributions in these and related areas are appreciated.

Special Technical Sessions

Regular Technical Sessions

Special Session B "Paddy Field Agriculture"

1. Environmental issues; agri-environmental practices (integrated management of water, nutrients and pesticides), environmental benefits from paddy field agriculture;

2. Resource conservation; water saving techniques and soil management;

3. Hydrological cycle and modeling for paddy field irrigation;

4. Land development and land consolidation, including road, irrigation and drainage structures;

5. Information, expert and decision support systems;

6. Issues on water management institution; water users' associations.

Informatics for Agriculture-2000

A special symposium on "Engineering the Agricultural Production Processes in the Information Age" will be held during the XIV Memorial CIGR World Congress 2000. Special sessions are organized where international speakers will share their experience and observations about the forthcoming transformations in agriculture. The scope of the symposium is:

Information Technology Developments in

Information Technology Applications

Inquiries should be directed to the Scientific Secretariat: Fax: +81-3-5841-8174; e-mail:cigr-ipc@bpe.en.a.u-tokyo.ac.jp (preferable); aoshita@hongo.ecc.u-tokyo.ac.jp (only available from December 31, 1999). Congress Secretariat: Hiroshige NISHINA; Fax: +81-89-947-8748; e-mail: nishina@agr.ehime-u.jp; Congress homepage: http://bee2.en.a.u-tokyo.ac.jp/cigr2000/

New Members of CIGR

Greetings from CSAE/SCGR

Introduction

In my capacity as the 1999 – 2000 President of CSAE/SCGR, I wish to send greetings from Canada to the other member bodies of CIGR. As you know, CSAE/SCGR has recently become a direct member of CIGR. With this message, I wish to provide some brief background about CSAE/SCGR, to provide some contact addresses to enhance communication among us and to invite you to attend this year’s annual conference, Agri-Food 2000.

Brief Background

CSAE/SCGR was formed in 1958 as The Canadian Society for Agricultural Engineering / La société canadienne de génie rural. In line with current North American practice, the society’s name was subsequently changed to The Canadian Society for Engineering in Agricultural, Food and Biological Systems / La société canadienne de génie agroalimentaire et biologique to reflect the expanded role being assumed by most of the Canadian universities teaching agricultural engineering (génie rural). The original acronym, CSAE/SCGR, was however retained to remind us of our historical roots.

CSAE/SCGR is an 800 member Canadian scientific and professional association with the goals of fostering and promoting its areas of applied science; enhancing communication among the professional community and student members at the seven Canadian universities graduating engineers and scientists in this field and acting as a lobby group for the profession in areas of public concern. Twenty-three per cent of our current members are university students and 12 % are foreign. The mission of the CSAE/SCGR, as conceived by its founders, is as follows:

CSAE/SCGR is closely affiliated with the Society for Engineering in Agricultural, Food & Biological Systems (ASAE). This affiliation enables our members to profit from the broad background provided by ASAE but to yet maintain our unique Canadian identity. CSAE/SCGR publishes a quarterly newsletter, and publishes a quarterly, peer-reviewed technical journal. We currently maintain two web sites The Home Page, hosted at the University of Saskatchewan is www.engr.usask.ca/societies/csae/, while the Page for Young Professionals, hosted at the University of Guelph, is www.eos.uoguelph.ca/webfiles/csae-yp/. Our Society Council has recently made the decision to begin electronic publication of our peer-reviewed technical journal. As well Council has decided to merge our two web sites. We will keep CIGR readership informed of our new web address.

Finally CSAE/SCGR has been fortunate to recently obtain the services of a new Society Manager. He is Pierre Jutras, a semi-retired, professional engineer with considerable experience in industry, at university and in overseas consulting. Pierre would like to hear from any of you who want to know more about our society or our profession in Canada. He can be reached at our new office or e-mail address, as follows:

CSAE/SCGR, P.O. Box, C.P. 316, Mansonville, Quebec, J0E 1X0, Canada; Tel: 450-292-3049; Fax: 450-292-3049; E-mail: csae.scgr@citenet.net

Agri-Food 2000

We also wish to invite any of you who may have the opportunity, to attend our annual meeting. This year’s annual meeting is Agri-Food 2000, held July 15 to 19, 2000, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is a joint meeting of CSAE/SCGR, the Agricultural Institute of Canada, the Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology and the Flax Council of Canada. For further information about this conference, contact info@agrifood2000.mb.ca or contact Pierre Jutras at our CSAE/SCGR office.

Erling Nyborg

President CSAE/SCGR, 1999-2000

The Turkish Chamber of Agricultural Engineers (TCAE)

The Turkish Chamber of Agricultural Engineers (TCAE), an organization of agricultural engineering professionals, was founded in 1954, by the Law Act.No 6235. The Chamber embraces all agricultural and fishery engineers in Turkey. There are more than 22 000 members of TCAE spread all over the country. However, not as in USA or UK, the definition of the term "Agricultural Engineering" in Turkey encompasses all disciplines of agriculture, including agronomy, animal science, phytopathology, entomology, agricultural machinery, irrigation, drainage, soil science and agricultural economics.

The goal and objectives of TCAE

The principal goal of TCAE is to help the advancement of Turkish agricultural sector and to protect the legal, social and economical rights of its members.

To achieve this goal TCAE,

Functions and Activities

TCAE performs such functions and engages in such activities as may be necessary or incidental to the achievement of the general objectives. These include:

Organization

Organization of TCAE is of two tiers: TCAE Center and TCAE Regional Branches.

It is stipulated in TCAE Statutes that the Center shall be constituted of the following organs: General Assembly and Governing Board, Board of Auditors, Honour Board and standing or ad hoc Committees or Working Groups. The General Assembly decides on all important matters, such as general policy, the program of activities, admissions, elections and budget.

The regional branches are governed by the respective General Assembly which consists of all members of TCAE situated within the region.

Central or regional Governing Boards whose members are elected by the relevant General Assembly, are responsible for carrying out daily activities. All financial, fiscal and legal actions together with related documents and accounts are examined by the relevant Board of Auditors reported to the General Assembly. As for the Honor Board whose members are elected by the general assembly from among those members who have distinguished themselves with extensive efforts and services to the ideals of TCAE has the authority to examine and decide on complaints concerning a member with regard to the code of conduct.

Standing or ad hoc Committees and Work Groups are formed by the Governing Board, usually following the instructions or recommendations of the General assembly or complying with the suggestions made by the members. They are responsible for investigation, reporting, formulation and recommendation of policy, implementation and advisory functions with regard to general areas or specific functions or concerns.

NEWS FROM SECTIONS AND WORKING GROUPS

2nd Inter-Regional Conference on Environment Water

The sustainable use of land and water resources is nowadays a problem of paramount importance for all social and economic sectors and regions. Imbalances between availability and demand, intersectorial competition, interregional and international conflicts call for new issues in land and water management. Moreover, the growing extent of environmental degradation and the resulting risks compel to rethink and redesign many modern technical approaches. In such a situation, new concepts and methods based on a closer combination of natural and engineering sciences are required.

Dealing with these subjects, a three-day conference on "Emerging Technologies for Sustainable Land Use and Water Management" was held in Lausanne, Switzerland, on 1-3 September 1999. The event – organized by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, with the collaboration and under the patronage of CIGR Section 1, EurAgEng Special Interest Group "Soil and Water" and ICID European Regional Working Group – was attended by more than 250 participants from 42 countries. 144 papers were presented, 100 in plenary sessions and 44 as posters.

In his introductory lecture, Prof. A. Musy, Chairman of the Organizing and Scientific Committee, delivered the greetings of the Federal Institute. He underlined the purposes and objectives of the Conference and pointed out that soil and water management has become a worldwide priority aiming to better serve the needs of both mankind and environment, while insuring durability and long-lasting development. After the opening speech, almost 100 authors drew the audience’s attention to the following themes:

In his address, Prof. Daniele De Wrachien highlighted the activity of the EurAgEng Special Interest Group "Soil and Water" in the planning and management of land and water resources. He announced that further research results on the topics covered by the Conference will be dealt with in the following events, supported by CIGR, EurAgEng and ICID: 3rd Inter-Regional Conference on Water Resource Management in the 21st Century, Budapest (Hungary), 1-3 June 2000; 19th European Regional Conference on Sustainable Use of Land and Water, Brno (Czech Republic), 4-8 June 2001.

NEWS FROM REGIONAL AND NATIONAL SOCIETIES

Report on the 28th International Symposium "Actual Tasks on Agricultural Engineering"

The 28th International Symposium "Actual Tasks on Agricultural Engineering" was held from 1–4 February 2000 in Opatija, Republic of Croatia. The main organizer of the Symposium was the Agricultural Engineering Department, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Zagreb. Co-organizers were the Faculty of Agronomy of the University of Osijek(Croatia), the Faculty of Agronomy of the University of Maribor (Slovenia), the Agricultural Institute of Slovenia, the Croatian Society of Agronomists, and the Croatian Agricultural Engineering Society. Co-sponsors were CIGR, EurAgEng and AAAE.

The proceedings comprise 38 papers, thirteen of which are from Croatia, four from Germany, seven from Slovenia, three from Lithuania, two each from Estonia, P.R. China and Macedonia, and one each from Romania, Belgium, Slovakia, Thailand and Turkey. Of the 38 papers 27 were presented while eleven authors were not able to attend the Symposium. This year we had invited four key note speakers, three from Germany (Prof. Dr.-Ing. Heinz Dieter Kutzbach, Universität Hohenheim, Institut für Agrartechnik, Dr. Horst Hesse from Bosch, Mr. Klaus Braunhardt from John Deere Werke Zweibrücken) and one from Belgium (Mr. Koen Maertens, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Department of Agro-Engineering and Economics, Heverlee). The world’s famous agricultural machinery producers presented their current programmes via video tapes in afternoon sessions.

At the Symposium there were 137 attendants, most of them from Croatia and Slovenia and several others from other European countries. During the Symposium an open debate on "Mechanization of family farms in Croatia" was organized with 92 attendants.

The Symposium has traditionally been held every year during the first week of February. Information for the 2001 Symposium will soon be available at http://www.agr.hr/aed.

 

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