FIDIC's 2000 Annual Conference is scheduled for September 10- 13 at the Hilton Hawaiian Village on the island of Oahu in Hawaii, U.S.A. Oahu may be the most diverse and exciting resort destination in the world. It has all the glamour of a cosmopolitan city, coupled with what may well be nature's most scenic and romantic getaway.

Oahu once served as a meeting place for Hawaii's island chiefs and so it is called "the gathering place." Today, this third largest island of the Hawaiian chain is home to three-quarters of Hawaii's more than one million people. The city of Honolulu offers a rich tapestry of museums, art galleries, live theater, opera, universities and research centers. Waikiki, Honolulu's beachfront resort, offers an array of hotels, shops, restaurants and activities.

Another Oahu awaits those who go beyond urban Honolulu. It's an island of dramatically eroded cliffs that fall to crystal blue seas, stretches of undeveloped beach, tropical rainforests and pineapple fields.

The program for FIDIC 2000 has been planned by ACEC with special support from and cooperation by the Association of Japanese Consulting Engineers (AJCE) and the China National Association of Engineering Consultants (CNAEC). FIDIC 2000 will explore a major challenge facing the world community as it enters the new millennium. A key premise of the conference is that sustainability and the future growth of our societies require the consulting engineering community to assume an expanded leadership role in the developmental process around the world. A number of world-renowned speakers will examine the multifaceted challenge of sustainability.

The FIDIC Sustainability Task Force will also present its preliminary report on how the consulting engineering community can lead the way on this challenge. With the report as a starting point, FIDIC 2000 will provide an opportunity to consider a range of views - for example, those of both the developed and developing world - through a series of "roundtable" discussions. The roundtable format encourages an open exchange of ideas among participants and promises to result in a lively discussion on this important topic.

In an effort to build upon the sustainability discussion at FIDIC 2000, the planners for FIDIC 2001 will draw upon the consensus reached in Honolulu to plan for meetings with other partners and stakeholders in the development process in Montreux in 2001.

FIDIC 2000 will feature a series of business management workshops to complement the main program. Conducted by some of America's leading business management authorities, these sessions will help attendees upgrade their knowledge of the business of design consulting. They will combine presentation, case studies and discussion into dynamic lessons that can be applied right away. Participants can move between two business track "concentrations," Project Management and Finance & Marketing, to team how to manage international project teams, write stronger proposals, even better understand the client.

The program will also feature two business management sessions available through separate registration. Participants can expand their management expertise by attending Innovations in Management, an intensive seminar sponsored by ACEC on Thursday, September 14. This session will help you improve your firm's operations while successfully harnessing the trends of the coming decades. Running concurrently with Innovations in Management will be the Senior Leadership Development Program, an ACEC program designed for senior executives.

We look forward to welcoming you to Hawaii in September and to showing you what our "aloha spirit" is all about.

FIDIC 2000 PROGRAM COMMITTEE
American Consulting Engineers Council
Association of Japanese Consulting Engineers
China National Association of Engineering Consultants