On the afternoon of June 11th, 2015, the former deputy director general of the Water Resource Department of Guangdong province, Li Yuean, was invited to SCET to give a wonderful lecture for students and teachers in the Hydraulic and Hydropower Engineering Department. The lecture was set up for juniors with the theme of “the development of Hydraulic Engineering and individual career planning”, which attracted many teachers、undergraduates as well as postgraduates to attend it.
Starting from the word “Hydraulic Engineering” first appeared in Historical Records, Mr. Li claimed that as time went by, China had paid more attention to Hydraulic Engineering and introduced its development. Since Mr. Li attached much importance to practice, he shared with attendants about four failed engineering cases. The reason why those projects failed was that the design, construction, maintenance and material selection were not operated based on regulation, which warned people to follow regulations during project operation. In the end, he introduced the development of modern Hydraulic Engineering in details from the aspect of “people-oriented” mission proposed by the Ministry of Water Resource of PRC in 2007. Besides, Mr. Li talked about the working choices for students, such as departments in Bureaus of water Resources or Water affairs Groups. This speech not only widened students’ minds but also helped them to have a deeper thinking about theory study and future career.
During the Q&A part, Mr. Li patiently answered questions from students as well as teachers. For example, Miss Cheng asked about how the Ministry of Water Resource of PRC dealt with the conflicts between the decreased hydroelectric power profits caused by ecosystem adjustment and environment protection. Mr. Li said this conflict would be solved under the effective control of national policies and systems. When asked to give some advice for students of Hydraulic and Hydropower Engineering Department based on his own working experience, Mr. Li responded “my whole life is related to practice from which I have learned a lot. I don’t advise you to be civil servants as soon as you graduate, for it will make what you learn in college become a waste. You should put the theory into practice and engage in practice.” At last, Mr. Li wished students could bear two things in mind: one is to have expectation for modern Hydraulic Engineering, and the other is to put heart into working and pay attention to practice. All attendants have learned a lot from Mr. Li ‘s lecture which drew round after round of hearty applause. (Photos/News School of Civil Engineering and Transportation)