Dear Section members,

It has been my privilege to serve you all as the Vancouver Section Chair for the year 2017. On your behalf, I attended and reported your achievements and hardships being faced to the IEEE Canada Board and also at Section congress  2017. We briefed you all on the sections past and proposed activities, appointments, obtained your overall approval and direction during Annual General Meeting in March. There are several good things achieved to talk about this year.

Vancouver Section received the IEEE Canada exemplary Large Section award for 2016. I collected the award on your behalf during spring IEEE Canada Board meeting at Windsor.

More than 119 Events Organized – In 2017, your Section organized more than 119 events during this year. This amounts to almost one event every three days during the year. The hard working volunteers from various chapters and affinity groups organized variety of events individually and also collaborated amongst themselves as well. Vancouver Section celebrated IEEE day jointly with both local and international Sections together using technology. Thanks to Guillaume and his team to organize this event in this manner for the first time in the history of Vancouver Section. Additionally, a good number of people represented your section at the 2017 Section Congress held in Sydney Australia, which helps build depth of leadership at the Section level.

TISP Revival – As promised, Teachers in Service Program (TISP) activities are being revived. TISP volunteers made their presence at 2017 Teachers’ PSA Superconference. There was a very good response from teachers especially teachers from interior part of BC requested IEEE volunteers to come to their elementary schools to inspire students towards engineering profession. I look forward for more IEEE volunteers in the interior to express their interest.

Scholarship awards increased – At present there is a practice to present Section’s three exemplary student scholarships during Vancouver Section Annual General Meeting (AGM). Vancouver Section decided to increase the student scholarship corpus fund using the surplus funds generated from the conferences organized by Section. The intent is to increase and sustain the three annual student scholarships from a meagre $500 each to eventually totalling about $4500 for three scholarships together. Your voluntary efforts generated adequate surplus funds over a period of time towards this goal. Further, during the IEEE Canada Fall Board meeting at Toronto I handed over $50, 000 Cheque to IEEE Canada Foundation (ICF) towards Vancouver Section student scholarship corpus fund on behalf of the Vancouver Section.

Contact Monthly magazine – With a circulation of nearly 4000, the contact monthly magazine was delivered to you relentlessly on time was recently disrupted due to sudden demise of Nick Keenan. Nick was serving the IEEE till his last breath, he even acknowledged the receipt of my yearend report for publishing in his natural style “Got it”. On behalf of Vancouver Section our heartfelt condolences and also acknowledging his relentless service to Vancouver Section community were communicated to his family by Guillaume Boisset. For over two decades Nick has been a most valued contributor and volunteer for the Vancouver IEEE Section. He has tirelessly and regularly published the Contact newsletter, amongst his other contributions. His editorial work and distributing the magazine was commendable to the electrical engineering and greater technical community in the Vancouver area. Alternate arrangements to communicate with you all will be informed in due course.

We always have room to improve and open to suggestions from IEEE members and non-members as well. Please consider applying for Senior Membership level when you qualify, you do deserve appropriate recognition for your contribution to the profession. I look forward for your continued support to the incoming executive team under the leadership of Guillaume Boisset to continue the great tradition at one of the oldest Sections, established in 1911.

Best regards,
Rama Vinnakota
Chair-IEEE Vancouver Section