Dr. Shen Chen Receives the 2008 College of Engineering Distinguished Alumnus Award
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Dr. Shen Chen
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The Colorado State University Alumni Association Distinguished Alumni Awards program recognizes CSU alumni and friends who have distinguished themselves professionally, brought honor to the University and have made significant contributions of time and/or philanthropy to the university or their community.
Shen Chen, Director-General of Taiwan's Water Resources Agency in the Ministry of Economic Affairs, was recently named the College of Engineering Honor Alumnus for 2008. Chen earned a master's of science degree in civil engineering from Colorado State University in 1985, and completed his Ph.D in the Department of Construction Engineering at the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology in 2007.
Recognized as a pioneer of water policy and successful water resources engineer, Dr. Chen has served as Director-General of Taiwan's Water Resources Agency since 2003. In this role, Dr. Chen is responsible for Taiwan's water resources planning, design, construction, operation and maintenance, and research. With an annual budget exceeding three billion U.S. dollars, his agency has built many dams, reservoirs, irrigation and water supply systems, and completed numerous river engineering and restoration projects in Taiwan, incorporating state-of-the-art engineering and management technology in water resources.
Under Dr. Chen's leadership and direction, Taiwan's Water Resources Agency worked closely with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Colorado State University on the development and application of leading technology to water resources projects in Taiwan. The Water Resources Agency and the U.S Bureau of Reclamation jointly funded the establishment and operation of CSU's Hydroscience and Training Center in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and have sponsored three CSU professors to give short courses and to provide consultation on water resources projects in Taiwan. In addition, the Agency will send its engineers to CSU for graduate studies so they can apply the knowledge and skills they acquired at Colorado State to water resources projects in Taiwan. The Agency will also sponsor field trips for CSU professors and graduate students, providing them the opportunity to broaden their international contacts and visions by visiting water resources projects in Taiwan.
Before accepting his current position, Dr. Chen held numerous top-level administrative positions in the public service arena, including his service as Executive Director of the Kao-ping River Watershed Management Commission and Director of the Departments of Labor Standards and Labor Relations for the Council of Labor Affairs. Dr. Chen participates in many international professional committee activities as both chair and member, and under his leadership, Taiwan's Water Resources Agency has signed several technical cooperation agreements with government agencies around the world.
Dr. Chen received the 1996 National Model Public Servant Award from the Central Government in Taiwan for his distinguished public service one of the highest awards for government employees in Taiwan. Dr. Chen has distinguished himself professionally, and is an outstanding example of the type of impact our alumni can have around the world.