Some of you may be aware that I have been in Nepal working for RedR and with the World Food Programme (WFP).
On the 25th of April this year, a 7.8 Mw earthquake hit Nepal. The next day there was an aftershock measuring 6.7 Mw. On the 12th of May a 7.3 Mw earthquake, followed minutes later with a 6.3 Mw earthquake hit. In the last month that I have been here, there has been a tremor over 4 Mw at least once a week somewhere in the country. The death toll for all these quakes is almost 9,000, with injuries of almost 30,000. The infrastructure damage is similarly horrific, although you can rebuild infrastructure.
To make matters worse, the monsoon season has recently finished, but the rains still come in heavily. Consequently, landslides are also causing problems: roads and tacks get blocked, which prevents food and water being delivered, which increases food-insecurity on communities. I’m living and working in the district of Sindulpalchok, which has just been classified as being severely food insecure (one step below a declared famine). In Kathmandu, there is a cholera outbreak. In the Terai region, there are strikes, protests, riots, curfews, and a lot of violence. Dozens of police and civilians have been killed.
As engineers, we can help, and many of us want to help. Unfortunately, most are not able to due to family or work, or simply they don’t believe their engineering skills relate to emergency and development work. I’m fortunate enough to be able to help (thanks University of Adelaide and my understanding wife). I’m here in what sounds like an apocalyptic environment. It appears that my life is a non-stop adventure; something Ernest Hemmingway might have once written about. However, the truth is less exciting, but actually more impactful and important. I live and work in one of the hardest hit towns in Nepal and my job is the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster Field Team Leader, Chautara. As grand as that sounds, I basically provide internet access to all the agencies working in the area.
As individuals we can usually only do small things. But these things are part of something much bigger. No one person is responsible for designing building a bridge, a submarine, a water treatment system, or an electrified network. But we all contribute how we can. I make sure that UN agencies can actually do their job. When I’m back in Adelaide, my job is to teach engineering students. When I present at schools, I try to inspire them to become our future engineers. Hopefully my actions help the World Food Programme staff deliver much needed food to remote Nepalese communities. Hopefully my students will achieve great things as engineers. Hopefully I also manage to inspire future generations of students. That is all I really can do – be a small part of a big machine.
As members of Engineers Australia, combined, we can achieve a lot. One chartered engineer is nice, but a profession that demands higher standards of its members, can change society. One person writing to the government about submarine procurements, 457 visas, quality of education or support to small businesses, may have some influence, but an Australian-based professional body with over 105,000 members, and developing links to government, demands to be heard and can change society. How we, as engineers, use Engineers Australia to make our lives, our profession, and Australia better is the question. What small-cog-in-a-big-machine actions can we do? The simple answer is to get involved. However, you can and however you want. Getting involved, in whatever field, is important to making the changes you want to see.
Dr Cris Birzer MIEAust
Division President in absentia