These were the most-read stories from the Engineers Canada Daily Media Report this year. Read on as we look back at the top stories from the engineering world in 2022.
Iron ring ceremony: In September, a recently formed group of engineers and engineering educators, students, university administrators, iron ring wardens, and not-for-profit groups like Engineers Canada, released a statement calling for a re-tooling of the “Ritual of the Calling of the Engineer,” the ceremony in which engineering graduates receive their iron ring. The statement noted that the ceremony is steeped in harmful outdated worldviews, including colonialism, racism, and sexism. The wardens that oversee the ceremony have formed a committee to review the ceremony and the organization to make it more meaningful and inclusive for all.
Software engineers: In October, the Council of Canadian Innovators (CCI) published an open letter, signed by the CEOs of 32 Alberta tech companies, complaining about the Alberta engineering regulator’s requirement that software companies stop using the title ‘engineer’ in job titles and postings unless they get permits from the regulator. APEGA responded with a statement about the importance of engineering regulation and licensure.
New CEO/Registrar at PEO: In November, PEO announced the appointment of Jennifer Quaglietta as Chief Executive Officer/Registrar, effective January 9, 2023. Quaglietta succeeds Johnny Zuccon, who announced his intention to retire in March 2022.
Engineering research: Stories about engineering research and researchers at post-secondary institutions were popular reads throughout the year. Among the most popular was a story from July about a team of U of T Engineering researchers, led by Professor Molly Shoichet, that designed a new way to grow cells in a laboratory that enables them to better emulate cancerous tumours. Another popular read was a July story about Sudip Shekhar, a UBC engineering researcher who received a $3M award for development of a credit-card-sized biomedical sensor.
Discipline and enforcement: Two discipline and enforcement stories were in the most-read stories from 2022. In May, CBC reported on a Saskatchewan engineer who would face an APEGS disciplinary hearing over allegations that he broke the rules when he designed a bridge in rural Saskatchewan that collapsed just hours after it was opened to the public. And in June, Engineers and Geoscientists BC announced that they had concluded disciplinary proceedings against the engineer whose design of the former Danbrook One building in Langford, BC, failed to meet the 2012 BC Building Code.
