Edmonton Chinese Engineers Society Banquet

Remarks by Hon. David Kilgour

Member of Parliament for Edmonton-Southeast

Members and Guests of Edmonton Chinese Engineers Society

11^th Anniversary Banquet

Mirama Restaurant, Edmonton
June 12, 2004

Greetings from the Government of Canada. I’m glad to be with you to celebrate the 11^th anniversary of the Edmonton Chinese Engineers Society, among so many distinguished engineers. Scientists and Engineers are often one step ahead of policy makers – last year, at your tenth anniversary banquet, the focus was Kyoto and the urgent need for new, innovative, and ecologically responsible energy options. A few months later, an enormous blackout along the east coast proved the point to naysayers.

This year, it’s a great pleasure to be with you to hear Dr.Kwok present his groundbreaking research on an idea of potentially global import. Although not a scientist, I can appreciate the value of Dr.Kwok’s research. The History of Science is marked by these ideas that come along and startle everyone with their brilliant simplicity. For a while, developing alternative energy sources became a Ptolemeic endeavour – growing more and more complex as they developed. Dr.Kwok and researchers like him are the Galileos of our era, looking at the issue from a new perspective, coming up with ingenious and pragmatic solutions.

Forgive me if this is an oversimplification, but from what I understand, Dr.Kwok has come up with a way of generating energy by harnessing a charge naturally passed by water as it flows through a small hole. Dr.Kwok’s approach comes from a profound insight into the behaviour of water, what happens within it, the relationships that develop under certain circumstances and change under other circumstances. This understanding has enabled him to make use of water’s innate energy without spoiling, altering or expending it in any way.

I applaud your Society for promoting and supporting researchers like Dr.Kwok, whose innovative, discerning ideas, and stalwart ecological consciences lend such hope to the future of our country and environment. I’d like to extend my best wishes for the future of the society and your continuing research.