DCS recognise Patron of RICS and passing of HMQEII
Written by, our Founder & Chairman, Bola Abisogun OBE FRICS
What is the significance of 11th September [in 2022], otherwise known as 9/11? Well, without attempting to detract from the tragic event that was;
…….today [11.09.22] we at DiverseCity Surveyors [moving forward] recognise this date as the first Sunday following the death of our Patron, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 08.09.22. May her soul rest in peace.
During her 70+ years of unfailing ‘service to others’, I recall many references to her, amidst her erstwhile presence across our London HQ, over in Parliament Square. I was fortunate and humbled to have been invited by the Senior Executive Team at RICS to observe Her Majesty’s visit in November 2018, to celebrate our 150thAnniversary.
A note from RICS, via our Chief Executive [issued to Members via email]:
Dear Abolade,
We would like to express our deepest sadness and condolences at the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
The Queen was the Institution’s longest serving Patron and her devotion and commitment to public service as Sovereign for the UK and Commonwealth will never be forgotten.
We had the privilege of welcoming her to our RICS London Headquarters to mark our 150-year anniversary, which I know many colleagues and members of the profession will remember fondly. Her unwavering commitment to her RICS patronage will remain a special and important part of our history and our heartfelt sympathies are with the Royal Family at this time of mourning.
There are several actions that we will be taking immediately, and over the coming days, to respond respectfully to Her Majesty’s death, and we will communicate them appropriately.
Anyone is welcome to post a message to the online Official Book of Condolence, which can be found here. There is a book of condolence in our London and Birmingham offices, and we will provide one in our Edinburgh office from Monday, to allow local members to pay their respects in person.
Regards,
Richard Collins
Interim CEO
The anniversary, of the Surveying profession, in 2018 actually followed an earlier RICS event in November 2017, whose focus was the LandAid Pledge; attended by Prince William, then Duke of Cambridge [now Prince of Wales].
Interestingly, and according to Max Hastings [published in the Sunday Times, 11.09.22]:
“She would have been the last to claim any supernatural powers, but Queen Elizabeth II accomplished a considerable miracle. She sustained Britain’s monarchy for seven decades, between the era of steam and Zoom.
[I have ‘omitted the entire content’ of the 2nd paragraph of his column; on page 1; to avoid any contention].
She was a bastion of stability and continuity, head of state in good times and bad, so that there news never any question of that role being stripped from her family and passing to an elected politician: none in today’s parliament appears remotely capable of filling her size 4 shoes. No other human being of her generation encountered so many towering figures, from Winston Churchill to John F Kennedy and Nelson Mandela. Her cumulative experience conferred upon the Queen a unique aura. She invited a deference that even few national leaders begrudged her”.
Her critics asserted that she lacked culture and imagination, but how could any human being have done her job who succumbed to the follies and impulses permitted to most of us?”
At DiverseCity Surveyors, we have debated much about the diversity of the global Surveying profession..........
And just prior to the Pledge 150 event, DiverseCity Surveyors had also celebrated its first ever event at RICS HQ ….. an event which spoke of the international and diverse presence across our profession / and the wider dimension of our role as Chartered Surveyors, led by our patron HMQEII, across the Commonwealth.
Which preceded .......
The dire need for greater diversity, equity & inclusion, pretty my life’s work; was duly recognised by Her Majesty during late December 2018 and shared with the profession, early 2019.
However on that fateful day, I knew exactly where I was; in my hotel room at the Clayton Hotel, in Ballsbridge, Dublin – preparing for my Keynote Speaking slot on the Invicara Stage later that afternoon at the ‘inaugural’hybrid BIM Coordinators ‘BIM C’ Summit 2022. I had detected that something was not right due to all members of the Royal Family following each other and descending upon Balmoral. By early evening it had been confirmed by the media, that Her Majesty, had taken her last breath and passed.
The ‘BIM C’ event was an amazing opportunity to serve other experts in the field of Information Management and specifically and the future of the Surveying profession [via #PQS2030], with a focus on cost management, Net zero and decarbonisation.
Led by Dr Claire Penny, the Invicara Stage (5) culminated into a focussed panel discussion on the role of Smart Assets which, from my ‘use-case’ was based upon the Grenfell Tower tragedy…….
........and provided a great platform to demonstrate the role of Digital Twins and to that end, the role of ‘structured data’ i.e. BIM.
The panel discussion that followed was an amazingly informative success too…….
During the evening, mild celebrative discussions were held with fellow Conference attendees including CIOB Trustee Ivan McCarthy ……..
……and his trusted colleagues from DFM Systems, led by Bobby Gallagher, MD.
The flight from Ireland back to Heathrow, was quiet and subdued and then at the baggage reclaim it was there for all to see; and it remains a sad day for many.
I on the other hand want to publicly celebrate the role of ‘Service to Others’ something that HMQEII did so well and championed ‘through others’ during her entire lifetime.
I met with (then) Prince Charles at my Investiture, held at Buckingham Palace on 7th February 2019, the question that I now pose to the profession, is amongst his now growing and immediate portfolio, will King Charles III, also become 'the Official' Patron of RICS (?) .......... will keep you posted.
Stay safe and blessed.