Creating and discovering the ISSMGE Heritage Time Capsule

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Abstract

The ISSMGE Heritage Time Capsule (HTC) project will launch key initiatives in 2024 to actively engage with the individual members of the ISSMGE. A significant initiative is the design and launching of a new website, dedicated for the HTC project to present, online, in a useful and engaging way, the diverse contributions made to the HTC. These contributions are from ISSMGE Member Societies, Past Presidents, Technical Committees, Corporate Associates, Key Persons, and other Board Level Representatives, and include video recordings, commented slide presentations, text documents and articles. Furthermore, this paper describes the HTC discoverer program, where individual members can provide their reports on HTC contribution(s) of their choice, for review and hosting on the HTC website. Plans for HTC discovery sessions in 2024 on areas of specific interest to ISSMGE regions are also included in the paper. The focus of this paper is the need and opportunity for discovery, the planned discovery process, and the anticipated outcomes of the discovery phase. The discovery phase bridges the contributions received from 2022 to 2024, to the display and sealing of a physical time capsule in 2026 at the 21st ICSMGE in Vienna, Austria, and the final phase of the HTC project reflecting on the needs of geotechnical engineering in the next 100 years.

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Short Curriculum

Sukumar's active engagement with the ISSMGE started at the 1st Corporate Associates Presidential Group (CAPG) meeting held in St Petersburg in 2012. He took the role of Chair of CAPG for the 2013 - 2017 presidential term, and continued as Chair and Co-chair in the 2017 - 2022 presidential term. In 2020, he initiated and led the work on a virtual time capsule. This work has now evolved into the Heritage Time Capsule (HTC), a standalone project of the ISSMGE. Sukumar is the lead for the HTC Design Team. Sukumar has worked for over 35 years in engineering consulting in technical, operational, business development and leadership roles. Sukumar is now focused on working with managers and academics in academic institutions on improving the application of education and research skills and outputs to industry needs.