Member News March 2019 First human cyborg speaks at China Prestige lectures IET Fellow and the first human cyborg, Professor Kevin Warwick, was the key note speaker at our China Prestige lectures in November. Professor Warwick, who is known for his studies on direct interfaces between computer systems and the human nervous system, delivered an engaging presentation on ‘What is it like to be a Cyborg?’ at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Zhejiang University and Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications. He also spoke at the Healthcare reception and Science on Tap lecture held by the British Embassy, and was interviewed by Chinese university students. More than 800 people attended this latest lecture series. To find out more about upcoming events in China, visit: theiet.org.cn 5 News from around the world Australian local network hosts Chief Engineer Victoria’s first Chief Engineer, Dr Colette Burke, was the guest speaker at an event held by the IET Victoria Local Network in October. Dr Burke has been appointed to oversee Victoria’s pipeline of major infrastructure projects, from metro tunnels to level crossing removals, as well as provide advice to government on developing and delivering these projects. During her evening with the local network, Colette shared her thoughts on what skills the projects would demand from technical and non-technical workforces. She also touched upon engineering equality, the need for more women in the field, and her current drive to encourage industry, government, academia and professional bodies to work together. “We found Dr Burke’s talk very inspiring, and had a great Q&A session with her as well,” said Raj Ranasinghe, the Victoria Network Chair. “We hope to continue to deliver such meaningful events and activities to the engineering community in Victoria. So watch this space!” Vancouver event on social responsibility Communities volunteer Dr Suresh Vishwakarma CEng MIET led the IET’s first event in Vancouver in September, aimed at increasing young engineers’ awareness of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The event, jointly organised with the Chartered Engineers Pacific, took place at Langara College, attracting both engineering students and young professionals. A series of presentations covered examples of CSR initiatives and ethical expectations of businesses, as well as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and how young engineers can contribute to them. The event ended with a workshop for the young executives of the future on introducing effective CSR initiatives to businesses. Find out what’s going on near you by getting in touch with your local network: theiet.org/mn-ln Professor Kevin Warwick CEng FIET being interviewed by a student Hong Kong conference addresses the future of power systems IET Hong Kong hosted the international power systems conference APSCOM (Advances in Power Systems Control, Operation and Management) in November. The conference brought together professionals and specialists to discuss the advances in power systems necessary to meet world needs, and the challenges and opportunities that arise from their evolution. The conference programme addressed many of the topics that have been on the power industry and public agenda in recent years, including renewable energy, the smart grid, digitalised power systems and the Internet of Energy. Dr Colette Burke, Chief Engineer of Victoria