President's Note
August 5, 2008
Greetings!
First and foremost, I thank you becoming a member of the Association of Transportation Professionals of Indian Origin (ATPIO). I am sure you will find your active participation in the Association activities very rewarding. All of us know that new organizations go through “crawl” and “walk” phases before they start “running” full steam. The ATPIO is no exception! It has gone through its crawl phase now and the proactive steps initiated by the ATPIO Board of Directors earlier this year has put it in a “fast walk” mode. Elected in January this year, the Board has moved quickly to finalize the “ATPIO Strategic Plan” (posted on www.atpio.org) and has started its implementation by appointing the following five Standing Committees:
- Membership and Finance,
- Communications,
- Meetings/Conferences and Events,
- Liaison and Collaboration, and
- Innovations and Monitoring.
Please review the attachment for their scopes and current committee members. The ATPIO Board will welcome your active participation in their activities, either as a member or as a volunteer. By sharing your thoughts and ideas with the other members, you will help the Association accomplish not only what is contemplated, but also what is commonly thought to be the “impossible”. Please note also that the Board will welcome and greatly appreciate your assistance in its on-going membership drive.
Other current ATPIO activities are:
- Co-sponsoring of the International Workshop at IIT Madras, September 12-14, 2008,
- Coordinating participation of members in the Golden Jubilee International Conference on Transportation Planning and Implementation Methodologies for Developing Countries, at IIT Mumbai, December 3-5, 2008,
- Assistance in Organization and Planning of the “AASHTO India Tour” scheduled for November 28-December 15, 2008 ,
- Organization of a potential session related to transportation developments in India at the 2009 TRB Annual Meeting, January 2009
- Organization of tracks for the 2009 International Conference on Travel Behaviour Research, December 13-18, 2009, Jaipur.
Again, I thank for your foresight in joining the ATPIO and sincerely hope that you will participate in its activities. Together, we will accomplish the “impossible”!
Best wishes,
Arun M. Shirole’, P.E.
ATPIO President