Extra.5

March 27, 2014

Japan Society of Civil Engineers
International Activities Center

IAC News （Extra Issue.5）
100th Anniversary

What is the role of an academic society?
This is a special year, the centennial of the founding of the Japan Society ofCivil Engineers (JSCE). I would like to take this opportunity to reexamine thenature of an academic society.
I have long wondered why the name of JSCE includes the word gakkai, whichmeans "academic society." Many of the members of JSCE work in construction
companies and consulting firms, together making up approximately half of its
membership. A smaller number of our members work in governmentorganizations, and even fewer work in academia, including schools andresearch institutions. JSCE has only about 4,000 academic members,accounting for just one tenth of its membership. In my view, although only aminority of its members work in academia, the role of JSCE in establishingnorms and standards of conduct has been based on its nature as an academicsociety.

Yozo Fujino
Chair,
100thAnniversary
Planning Committee (Professor
Emeritus and Adjunct Professor,University of Tokyo)

While the organization's name in Japanese literally means "Civil Engineering Academic Society," its title in
English is "Japan Society of Civil Engineers." This is analogous to the American Society of Civil Engineers(ASCE). Meanwhile, the British equivalent is called the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). Neither of thesewords, "society" or "institution," necessarily refers to an academic organization.
Through my involvement in planning for the 100th anniversary of JSCE, I have had many opportunities to learn
about academic societies. The first academic society to be established in Japan was the Tokyo MathematicalCompany, which was founded in 1877, using the word "company" in its name. A year later, the term gakkai(academic society) came into use with the 1878 founding of the Chemical Society of Japan. All of thesubsequently formed organizations of this kind called themselves academic societies, including the Japan
Federation of Engineering Societies (JFES), which was founded in 1879 and can be considered as thepredecessor of JSCE.

Baron Koi FURUICHI
The 1st JSCE President

First issue of JSCE Magazine

I have also looked into use of the term gakkai in Chinese-speaking
countries, where the same writing system is used. The names of theChina Civil Engineering Society (CCES) and the Chinese Institute ofCivil and Hydraulic Engineering (CICHE) both use this term.
However, I discovered that the word gakkai is not found in Chinese
etymological dictionaries. The first modern Chinese scientificassociations using gakkai in their names were the Society for theDiffusion of Christian and General Knowledge Among the Chinese
and the Society for Diffusion of Useful Knowledge in China, foundedin Shanghai in 1889. Many more academic societies were foundedInternational Activities
after that. When the current China Civil Engineering Society wasfounded in 1912, its initial name was the Chinese Institute of Engineers. The name was changed to China CivilEngineering Society [gakkai] in 1936. In Taiwan, the name of the Chinese Institute [gakkai] of Civil andHydraulic Engineering was adopted in 1949. In the modern era, the Chinese language has imported a great
deal of Japanese vocabulary words in fields such as politics, economics, philosophy, science, and physicaleducation. I realized that the word gakkai must also be a loan word from Japanese.
When JSCE was founded in the early Taisho period, its
membership, like that of JFES, consisted of a few elite persons who
had received advanced education at the Imperial College ofEngineering or the Imperial University. It was founded for thepurpose of contributing to society through the advancement of civilengineering based on academic studies. Therefore, it wascompletely natural and appropriate to call it an academic society.
However, JSCE has seen significant changes during the pastcentury. It is now a very open organization in which anyone who isinterested in civil engineering and involved in the field of civil
International Panel Discussion
was held at JSCE Annual Meeting
engineering may become a member. Academia remains important,
but the society is not limited to academic studies. Part of the role of
JSCE today is to be a forum where members can freely debate and investigate matters of civil engineering andmake recommendations for society. One of the values of an academic society needs to be the establishment ofa flat arena within the vertical structure of Japanese society, where members can step out from their positions,affiliations, and status to share their views on an equal footing.
JSCE has become quite a large organization, and many persons are participating in its centennial activities.
I have endeavored to ensure that the 100th Anniversary Planning Committee functions as a flat organization.
I believe that this attitude should permeate society, and I would like to request the cooperation of all membersof the society in working to make this a reality.
(This is an English translations from the Japanese version published in JSCE Journal, Vol. 99, No. 1, January 2014)

JSCE's 100th Anniversary Celebration
Pamphlet