To the ACEC Community, Sunday marked the first day of Engineers Week, a celebration of our industry and the crucial role it plays in our nation’s progress and prosperity. While for us here at ACEC, every week is Engineers Week, E-Week is an opportunity to showcase the incalculable impact of engineering in our homes, our communities, our country, and the world. Engineers make the lives we lead possible. They are the technical and creative forces behind the homes we live in, the buildings we work in, the transportation systems that get us there, and the infrastructure that propels it all. The third week of February was chosen to commemorate Engineers Week to coincide with the February 22 birthdate of George Washington, who is considered by many to be our nation’s first engineer due to his survey work. Many achievements come to mind when we think of the Father of our Country: his military brilliance, his statesmanship, his role as president of the Constitutional Convention, from which came the world’s longest-lived written and codified national constitution. But often overlooked are Washington’s technical genius and innate instinct for design and engineering. On this day after President’s Day, we recognize the remarkable achievements of a remarkable man, and celebrate President Washington as not only the Father of our Country but, arguably, one of the fathers of our industry, as well. One of my favorite George Washington quotes is, “Human happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected.” In my mind, that holds true for professional happiness, as well. We are spending this week celebrating the lifesaving, game-changing, world-altering work performed by engineers, and I am both pleased and proud to join in that celebration. We do what we do better than anyone – and what we do has the ability to improve lives, preserve our environment, and make for a more equitable world. If that’s not a calling driven by moral duty, I don’t know what is. I thank you for all that you do and extend that same gratitude on behalf of the communities that are safer, cleaner, and more accessible because of your efforts.
Linda Bauer Darr President & CEO American Council of Engineering Companies | ACEC