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Contact:
David L. Belden
UNITED ENGINEERING FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES SUPPORT WASHINGTON (22 February 2005) — The United Engineering Foundation (UEF) has contributed $25,000 towards the collaborative efforts of the engineering community to rebuild schools and other infrastructure destroyed by the Indian Ocean tsunami on 26 December 2004. “While this amount is small in comparison to the overall need, it is deemed sufficient to gain substantial attention inside and outside the engineering community and to stimulate others to offer similar financial support,” said David. L Belden, executive director, UEF. In celebration of Engineers Week 2005 (20-26 February), the UEF contribution is among the first monetary pledges from the engineering community that will lend support to the reconstruction relief efforts led by Engineers Without Borders-USA (EWB-USA). EWB-USA, a nonprofit organization, was established in 2000 to mobilize volunteer engineers to provide sustainable engineering aid to needy communities around the world. EWB will require $7 million for tsunami relief projects already underway in Sri Lanka, including the rebuilding of nine village schools, plus homes for basic safe water and sanitation facilities in hundreds of small villages in the region. “Individual engineers and engineering organizations, working together, have tremendous potential to contribute in so many ways. Coupling this with the virtually unprecedented need caused by the tsunami disaster easily convinced the United Engineering Foundation to provide an initial contribution to provide assistance,” said Thomas T. Jackson, president, UEF. About the United Engineering Foundation, Inc. The United Engineering Foundation was founded in 1904 with the generous support of Andrew Carnegie. It advances engineering for the welfare of humanity by, among other things, making grants. Its members are the American Society of Civil Engineers, American Society of Chemical Engineers, American Institute of Mining Engineers, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers with combined individual membership of nearly 800,000. About Engineers Without Borders — USA Engineers Without Borders — USA (www.ewb-usa.org) partners with disadvantaged communities to improve their quality of life through implementation of environmentally and economically sustainable engineering projects, while developing internationally responsible engineering students. # # # |
