WECC2015 Newsletter No.3
Preparations for WECC2015
and a Warm Invitation

March 18, 2015

meet the needs of a wide range of participants.
In this newsletter I would like to provide a broad
outline of these preparations.

Dr. Jun’ichi SatoChair
WECC2015 Organizing
Committee

The conference program will comprise theopening ceremony, conference plenary lectures,
technical program, summary and concluding
remarks of the technical sessions, and theclosing ceremony.

Just nine months remain until the WorldEngineering Conference and Convention(WECC2015) in Kyoto. Preparations areproceeding with eager anticipation, theconference program is almost complete, and theprograms for technical visits and accompanying
persons are nearly finalized. Tentative bookings
have been made at several categories of hotel,
ensuring that plenty of rooms will be available toSeven conference plenary lectures are planned.
UNESCO will discuss engineering and society,the International Energy Agency will address
global energy issues, and the United Nations will
speak about global water issues. A representativeof the Japanese business community will
provide insights on engineering and theautomotive industry, the Ministry of Land,
Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism will talkabout building national resilience, andtheWECC2015 Registration is now open!!
We are now pleased to inform you that our online Registration is open.
Please register by accessing the following URL:
http://www.congre.co.jp/wecc2015/registration/index.html
Official Accommodation website is also available with variety of Hotels to match your preference.

Venue: Kyoto InternationalConference Center

Date:
WECC2015: November 29 - December 2
WFEO General Assembly, Executive Council andCommittee Meetings: November 28 - December 4
Technical Visits: December 3

Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry willdiscuss economic policy and innovation. In ourfinal plenary lecture, Professor Hiroshi Amanoof Nagoya University, joint recipient of theNobel Prize in Physics for 2014, will speak on
LED lighting and environmental issues.
In the technical program, renowned experts fromnumerous fields will provide overviews of thecurrent state and future direction of various areasof engineering that will play key roles inachieving sustainable development for oursocieties. Sessions will also be structured toallow for discussion with the audience. To makesuch debate even more effective, we will stage aposter session open to all contributors. We hopethat integration of these program elements will
spark in-depth discussion about the future ofvarious fields.
The afternoon of December 2, the final day ofthe conference, will feature a summary andconcluding remarks of the sessions in thetechnical program, accompanied by furtherdiscussion. This debate will clarify future
direction for various fields of engineering, and a
Kyoto Declaration summarizing the outcomes
will be issued at the closing ceremony.
Culture plays a major part in cultivating thedevelopment of engineering. To supplement thetechnical program, the WECC2015 technicalvisits and accompanying persons’ program will
provide opportunities to learn more about
engineering in the Kyoto region and the culturethat has supported it.
Kyoto and its environs are home to many
world-famous companies rich in creativity, andthe local culture has had a large impact on theirdevelopment. Visits to such companies will give

participants a greater understanding of theinterplay among engineering, industry, andculture.
Another original feature of the conference willbe the Kyoto sessions on the afternoon ofNovember 29. These will introduce uniqueaspects of Kyoto culture, including Japanesecuisine, which has been recognized by UNESCO
as part of the intangible cultural heritage ofhumanity. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn
more about the distinctive culture of the region.
The conference period from November 29 toDecember 2 falls in one of Kyoto’s mostbeautiful seasons. Autumn hues tinge theregion’s many trees in red and yellow, creating astunning backdrop for viewing its naturalfeatures, historic places and temples. Thiswonderful season is the perfect time to visit
Kyoto. Since hotels are very busy at this time ofyear, we are fortunate to have secured plenty ofrooms to meet your accommodation needs. We
recommend that you make your reservations asearly as possible.
The Organizing Committee is making every
effort to ensure that WECC2015 is a success. We
look forward to welcoming you to Kyoto in thissplendid season for stimulating discussion atWECC2015.

WECC2015 Program Outline:
Achieving Problem-Solving Innovation

Dr. Botaro Hirosaki
Vice Chair
WECC2015 OrganizingCommittee

Humankind currently faces a host of global
problems, including climate change, resourceand energy issues, and aging societies. In a wide
range of fields, innovation is playing a more
important role than ever before in resolving such
issues and achieving sustainable growth.
WECC2015 in Kyoto will bring together thelatest
resultsofinterdisciplinary
andcross-industry innovation under the overall
theme of “Engineering: Innovation and Society”
and discuss directions for problem-solving witha view to building societies of the future.
Specifically,WECC2015
will
examineinnovation from the three perspectives oftechnology, social infrastructure, and humanresource development to provide a forum fordiscussion with experts from around the world
and the sharing of knowledge in a wide range offields.
Discussion of technological innovation will
focus on the latest technologies in the fields ofenergy and resources; civil engineering,
construction and urban planning; mobility andtransportation;
informationandtelecommunications; and partnership between
medicine and engineering. Attendees will also
share views on
future directions forinterdisciplinary problem-solving.
In exploring social infrastructure innovation,
participants will discuss issues for achievingsustainable growth and pool real-world
innovation experiences relating to systems
infrastructure for emergency response andresilient societies; utilization of big data tocreate new industries; utilization of intellectual
property
andfinance;
platforms
fornext-generation manufacturing; and platforms
for development of next-generation materials.
Sessions on human resource development
innovation will consider the social missions ofengineering as they deal with a wide range ofissues including risk communication, ethics forengineers, and diversity, including development
opportunities for women in engineering. Lessons
from the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear accident,
which attracted worldwide attention, will also beshared and discussed.
Unlike regular international conferences
focusing on particular fields of specialization,
WECC2015 will provide a forum forinterdisciplinary
discussion
aimed
atproblem-solving innovation. It will offer
unrivalled opportunities to acquire wide-ranging
new knowledge, not only for specialists invarious fields, but also for policy-makers fromaround the world, corporate managers from thebusiness community, and young researchers
strivingtoset
newdirectionsforproblem-solvinginnovation.
Internationalexperts will gather in Japan’s ancient capital,
Kyoto, which has learned many lessons from theevents of March 11, 2011, to discuss ways ofachieving sustainable future growth. I hope you
will join us.