October

2020

WELCOME
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT Women of WEDA (WoW) was founded to
WoW Member: Catherine Chu create both an empowering and a safe
Hometown: Shanghai, China space for women, women-identifying
Current City: Seattle, Washington people, or anyone who considers
Current Job: Capital Project Manager, Port of Seattle themselves to be in the minority to
Alma mater: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign network, discuss issues, and gain advice
Tongji University, Shanghai, China from others in the sector who work/live
Degree: Master of Landscape Architecture in similar situations (e.g., obtaining a seat
at the table, having your voice heard
once you are at the table, managing
Catherine is currently serving as the Program Manager for the WEDA Pacific Chapter Board
multiple different hats in work/life)
of Directors. Women of WEDA (WoW) asked Catherine some questions in order to get to
know her better, and she had some great things to say about how her international
experiences have had an impact on her professional life, how she works to promote social
Upcoming Events
justice issues within the Port of Seattle, how she has worked to balance being a single nd
October 22 2020 - presentation:
mother and her career, and even her admiration for the Dalai Lama.
Restoring Coastal Marsh Habitat in West
Bay, LA, Young WEDA paper
WoW: Who is a person you admire and why?
https://www.westerndredging.org/index
CC: Dalai Lama. I admire him for his intellect and wisdom. Most people already know him
.php/events/weda-webinar-restoring-
as a Buddhist and for the Buddhist values he advocates, such as peace and compassion.
coastal-marsh-habitat-in-west-bay-la
However, do you know that he is also passionate about science, and that Buddhism and
Science can be very compatible? th
October 29 2020; 2-5pm - WEDA Pacific
Chapter Virtual Meeting Hosted by the
WoW: If you could have coffee with anyone in the world, who would it be?
USACE South Pacific Division
CC: Matthieu Ricard, who is a French writer, photographer, translator, who received a PhD
https://www.westerndredging.org/index
in molecular genetics and became a Tibetan Buddhist, and who has been called “the
.php/regionalchapters/pacific-chapter
world’s happiest man” based on a 12-year brain study on meditation and compassion led
by neuroscientists from the University of Wisconsin. What an interesting man, right? th
December 18 2020 - Rebecca
Gardener: Engineering in Nature (Tech
WoW: Tell us about your work-life, including an overview of your job and roles.
Notes) – Information to be provided at a
CC: I work for the Port of Seattle as a Capital Project Manager. My area of focus has been
later time.
environmental sustainability, dredging, sediment remediation and environmental cleanup.
I remain inspired by being part of the leadership making the Port a more sustainable
agency. My job entails leading multidisciplinary teams and delivering projects from Past Events to Revisit
planning through construction completion. th
July 27 2020 - Safety Commission
WoW: What inspired you to join the Port of Seattle and what has the evolution of the Virtual Panel
business been like since you joined? https://www.westerndredging.org/index
CC: When I joined the Port in the 1990s, it was growing tremendously, and it offered many .php/safety-comm-panel
opportunities to clean up industrial waterfront properties and develop brownfield land for th
industrial, commercial and recreational use. I was living in a neighborhood adjacent to one August 14 2020 - Reservoir Sediment
of the Port’s container terminals where the Port was implementing a project to clean up Panel
the historical pollution under Superfund, redevelop the property for use that included an https://www.westerndredging.org/reser
expanded cargo terminal and a neighborhood park. The Port’s business growth has slowed, voir-sediments-panel-webinar
but its environmental program has continued to expand.
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT (cont.), Catherine Chu

WoW: In your experience, what are the most important factors to remember when managing business development pursuits for
a business, and how do you implement these lessons?
CC: Just as aligning career goals with personal values is important, I think aligning business development pursuits with the
company’s values and strategic goals is important. I also think understanding the customers or business partners and their values
and goals is important. When these values align, and when we also have a competent and committed team, success is likely. For
example, the Port of Seattle has triple-bottom-line goals for financial sustainability, environmental sustainability, and social
justice. In keeping with these values, I led a project team that developed and delivered a project to install solar panels on the roof
of the Port’s headquarters building at minimal cost to the Port by leveraging grant funding. This project provided business
opportunities to a local woman and minority owned contractor through a competitive selection process while aligning with the
Port’s strategic goal to be the greenest and most energy-efficient Port in North America.
WoW: How have your past professional and academic experiences and lessons prepared you for the work you do today?
CC: I’m fortunate to have had international life, education, and professional experience. I’m a Chinese native and I still have
strong ties with friends and colleagues in China, many of whom work in science, technology, engineering, and politics. I have also
traveled extensively through Europe and am an intermediate French speaker. This international and multicultural experience has
served me well for working in a globally oriented organization.
WoW: What would you say is your biggest career milestone to date and why?
CC: My election to the Board of Directors for the Western Dredging Association – Pacific Chapter. This position represents the
culmination of years of hard work and dedication to the dredging industry.
WoW: How would you say being a woman has affected your professional experience? What can we do to create more equal,
uplifting spaces for women in your industry?
CC: As a woman, I feel that I bring a more collaborative and inclusive style to project teams, which ultimately results in higher-
quality outcomes. I believe career options for women in the fields of science and technology have advanced considerably in
recent years: I’m seeing more and more young women taking up interest in STEM in high school and college. I believe that
women who are already established in the field should support them when they enter the traditionally male-dominated work
force in order to ensure that they are seen and heard for the work they do. We should also promote more women into leadership
roles.
WoW: What’s the gender ratio like in your industry? Do you see it evolving? Why or why not?
CC: I work for a public agency and I think we are doing much better in the area of gender equality in the science and engineering
field compared to the private sector. As a Port project manager, I often see private engineering firms assemble all male project
teams coming for interviews for Port projects. I’m glad we are the leaders in gender equality, and I hope to see more and more
public and private sectors follow this trend.
WoW: What would you say is your biggest strength in your role(s)? What would you say is the skill you most need to improve?
CC: My life experience as a single mom for most of my kids’ upbringing while having a career as a female leader in a technical field
and has taught me resiliency, perseverance, and empathy. I have strong leadership and planning skills. I’m very strategic. The skill
I most need to improve is perhaps my depth of technical expertise. While many at the Port call me “Dredge Queen”, I
nevertheless know that I have not yet mastered the field; I am often humbled when meeting top national and global experts in
the field.
WoW: Who are some women in your field that you look to for inspiration?
CC: One of my early mentors and technical advisors on dredging was Nancy Case O’Bourke, engineer and project manager at
Dalton, Olmsted & Fuglevand. Nancy has nearly 40 years of engineering, construction, and project management experience in the
dredging and environmental field, and she mentors and supports other women professionals such as myself. I think Nancy truly
deserves the “Dredge Queen” title. nd
Catherine attending the 22 World Dredging
Congress in Shanghai, China

Contact Catherine on LinkedIn:

linkedin.com/in/Catherine-chu-pmp-09311756

or Email Catherine: cyingc2000@gmail.com

Special thanks to Teal Dreher for
coordinating the above interview!
 Opportunities for Women of WEDA:
Join the new WODA Working Group on Reservoir Dredging:

WODA, the World Dredging Association made up of WEDA, EADA, and CEDA, is initiating a few technical working
groups each of which will be tasked with providing a technical guidance document on a specifically-selected
subject related to Dredging.

The very first WODA Working Group, which is just getting started, is on the subject of “Reservoir Dredging”. This
new working group can use a few more participants from WEDA, so if you are reading this, please consider joining!

In summary the Working Group goals are:

a) Produce a WG report (target date of end of 2022) with guidance on:

i. how to extend the lifetime of a reservoir through dredging

ii. how to improve the productivity of a reservoir by dredging

iii. how to include dredging into the early design and planning phase

iv. how to utilize dredging techniques to improve the ecosystem, and

v. best practices and case studies

b) Promote the exchange of knowledge during the process

WG meetings are being held virtually (through MS-Teams) every other month, and WEDA is aiming for a total
number of participants from the Americas (WEDA’s region) of about 15. Members of the WG are expected to
participate in the meetings as well as do some work for the WG in between meetings.

The subject of Reservoir Dredging has been selected by WODA in large part because it’s a new and emerging
subject, and for that reason WEDA is not looking for existing experts on the subject, but individuals who are
interested in the subject and enthusiastic about working with others around the world to establish this world-wide
guidance document. Of course, some background in and knowledge about dredging is important. If you’re already
a WEDA member – your interest and knowledge in the topic is probably sufficient!

Individuals who have backgrounds in engineering, ecology, consulting, cost-estimating, or any other field, are
encouraged to reach out. We are hoping to get participants with a diversity of experiences and backgrounds.

If you are interested, or have further questions, get in touch with Marcel Hermans, at 503-329-7326 or
marcel.hermans@portofportland.com. Please reach out at your earliest opportunity!

Have something to share?

If you have opportunities to share, or
want to get more involved with
Women of WEDA, please email:

Kathryn Thomas
ANAMAR Environmental Consulting, Inc
VP of Business Development
kthomas@anamarinc.com