Day: January 4, 2022

Former AIH President Delivers a Keynote Address at the Latin American Congress of Civil Engineering Students

Former AIH President Delivers a Keynote Address at the Latin American Congress of Civil Engineering Students

From November 14-20, 2021, over 120 civil engineering students from nine Latin American countries attended the COLEIC (Latin American Congress of Civil Engineering Students) 2021 event in Tarija, Bolivia.

Dr. Miguel A. Medina, Jr., PH (AIH President, 2009-2010) delivered a keynote presentation on November 17th titled “Water Resources of Bolivia, Integration of Hydrologic Cycle Processes, Climate Change Challenges, Adaptation and Professional Opportunities.” That same day he was invited to the Municipality of Tarija and presented with an ordinance declaring him a Distinguished Visitor. While at the Tarija City Hall, he was interviewed by a local journalist regarding his findings of potential climate change in Tarija.

The following morning a national Bolivian TV (UNITEL) news crew interviewed him live at the Hotel Vendimia lobby on the topic of Bolivian water resources and management, as well as potential climate change implications. The broadcast was also presented again that evening on a national news segment.

On November 18^th, Medina also participated in a forum discussion on climate change implications for the civil engineering and hydrology professions.

For his presentation, Medina examined the annual maxima series of precipitation at three recording stations in the region: Tarija (1944-2020), Juntas (11976-2020) and Cañas (1977-2020).

Nonstationary time series analysis with the Generalized Extreme Value Distribution (GEV) was applied to the three stations.

Both Tarija and Juntas exhibited a slight decrease in precipitation. However, at a higher elevation over a mountain ridge, Cañas exhibited a substantial increase in precipitation.

Both deterministic and statistical methods were discussed, as well as surface-subsurface interactions across the hydrologic cycle. The presentation ended with recommendations for infrastructure adaptation to climate change, increased monitoring needs, and a review of current standards. Specific recommendations followed for future training of civil engineers and hydrologists to enhance their professional opportunities.

Institute Development Recap

Institute Development Recap

This past fall, the American Institute of Hydrology participated in two hydrology related conferences: 2021 Minnesota Water Resources Conference (MWRC) on October 19, 2021 and the American Water Resources Association (AWRA) on November 10, 2021.

At the MWRC conference, Salam Murtada (VP of Institute Development), Brennon Schaefer (VP of Communication) and John Nieber (past president of AIH) co-authored a presentation titled “American Institute of Hydrology: Certifying the Practice of Hydrology”. The presentation provided an overview of AIH, history, current membership composition, certification process and on-going activities. It was attended by over 100 people. The conference, which was held virtually this year, was attended by over 800 water resources professionals representing students, university teachers, consultants and government officials at the federal, state and local levels. The MWRC is held annually around the middle of October in St. Paul, Minnesota.

At the AWRA conference, AIH participated at the gold level sponsorship. During the reception, Salam Murtada gave a brief presentation about AIH followed by award announcements for three outstanding hydrologists: Vicki Kretsinger Grabert who was awarded the Charles V. Theis Award for contributions to groundwater, Dr. Phil Bedient who was awarded the Ray K. Linsley award for contributions to surface water and Dr. Ying Ouyang who was awarded the Robert G. Wetzel award for contributions to water quality. The AWRA conference was also held virtually this year due to the pandemic.


Vicki Kretsinger Grabert, PH	Dr. Phil Bedient	Dr. Ying Ouyang, PH
Charles V. Theis Award for Contributions to Groundwater	Ray K. Linsley Award for Contributions to Surface Water	Robert G. Wetzel Award for Contributions to Water Quality

We hope to continue collaborating with MWRC, AWRA and other organizations such as the Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc (CUAHSI), Groundwater Resources Association (GRA) and the American Geoscience Institute (AGI) among many others.

Membership Renewals

Membership Renewals

Please be reminded that your membership with AIH will expire on January 15, 2022. We encourage you to renew your dues now. Renewal of dues should be completed through the Certemy platform.

We hope you will take the time to renew your membership and remain part of our community. AIH’s dedication to the organization and commitment to the hydrology industry is unprecedented. You want to continue to be a part!

We value all contributions to AIH, as we recognize that without committed and involved members, AIH would not be where it is today. Your involvement is important and very much appreciated.

AIH offers numerous reasons to continue to stay involved:

Continuous membership is required to maintain current status as a certified member.
AIH offers access to its online membership directory in a member portal environment.
Receive peer, employer, industry, and client recognition of technical expertise in hydrology.
Hydrologist certification satisfies requirements for jobs in many states.
Access to National Registry of Certified Professional Hydrologists network.
Discount on AIH publications and events.

We would like to thank the entire American Institute of Hydrology (AIH) organization for its involvement and support this past year. We accomplished a lot!

If your certification type has changed since you last renewed, or you find yourself having issues accessing your Certemy profile, please contact the AIH office at admin@aihydrology.org or call (916) 231-2149.