Of those who responded to my February 2008 column, "Be a mover and shaker in todays global workplace," about structural engineers being able to profoundly shape the coming decade, many focused on establishing ways to define our profession for the future. Along these lines, Stan Caldwell, chair of American Society of Civil Engineers’ (ASCE) Technical Region Board of Governors, pointed out that after the Summit on the Future of Civil Engineering in June 2006, "ASCE began a long-term effort to define the role of civil engineering in the future—The Vision for Civil Engineering in 2025."

Caldwell, a member of the ASCE Executive Committee and Board of Direction, said, "This effort started with an vision that was developed at that event and can be summarized this way: Entrusted by society to create a sustainable world and enhance the global quality of life, civil engineers serve competently, collaboratively, and ethically in their role as master planners, designers, constructors, and operators of society’s economic and social engine—the built environment; stewards of the natural environment and its resources; innovators and integrators of ideas and technology across the public, private, and academic sectors; managers of risk and uncertainty caused by natural events, accidents, and other threats; and leaders in discussions and decisions shaping public environmental and infrastructure policy."

"ASCE’s efforts strive to lead the profession boldly into the future, and we are essentially marching in the same direction that individual engineers are. But hundreds of more voices and professional outreach efforts are needed."

Caldwell’s comments beg this question: Not only where do individual structural engineers stand on the issue of defining their profession for tomorrow, but what are they and their structural engineering associations doing to make sure it is the best it can be? Few industry summits or roundtable discussions focus on engineers as societal leaders and address their stature with the public and media. Failing to delve into why engineers are not on par with other professions like medicine, law, science, and architecture—and what they can do now to be—is flawed thinking.

It seems easier to interest most engineers in seminars for improving skills to design something, use BIM techniques, manage projects, and make more money (in the short run). Concentrating on these engineering and business aspects is definitely warranted. However, what’s also needed is introspection if this constructive profession is, indeed, to flourish in the future. More effort should be put into addressing intangibles and offering more seminars to improve those aspects of structural engineering that will make it a desirable, sought-after profession in the coming decades.

What William Parsons, the politically astute founder of Parsons Brinkerhoff, said more than 100 years ago rings equally true today: "Engineering is a noble profession. Seek to develop its spiritual side, to understand its ideals, and to maintain its standards of ethics and conduct. The engineer [structural engineers included] has a higher mission to perform than that of a mere technologist. He [or she] occupies a position of trust and great responsibility and must have the courage and imagination to be a daring innovator—and a leader of men."

Because those who show up run the world, structural engineers need to step forward and be heard—on a daily basis. Only members of the engineering profession are capable of adequately and favorably defining their profession and improving its stature. It is ludicrous to think situations will get better by themselves or that someone else will protect our profession, its ethics, and professionalism. We must do it ourselves!

Bob Johnson, public relations and outreach activist for the Structural Engineers Association of Illinois, stated the solution well: "We need to get more engineers to show up. It’s been said that engineering is the stealth profession. That may be true, but it’s only because we engineers, by and large, choose to remain invisible. It’s time to change that!"

What are you willing to do to change that in the coming months and what will you be asking your favorite structural engineering association to do?