Technical Advisory and Outcome Committee
Overview
The Technical Advisory and Outcome Committee (TAOC) is an evolution of the former Technical Oversight Committee (TOC), reflecting a transition from a primarily oversight-oriented role toward a more collaborative and strategic advisory role. TAOC supports and coordinates the activities of ISSMGE's Technical Committees (TCs), fostering collaboration, innovation, communication, and technical excellence, while helping TCs enhance the outcomes, visibility, and long-term impact of their activities.
The Technical Committees provide a forum for ISSMGE members to discuss, develop, and apply specialist geotechnical knowledge and to contribute to the advancement of geotechnical engineering and engineering for society. Their activities include technical conferences and workshops, publications, guidelines and recommendations, educational initiatives, international collaboration, and interaction with industry and other professional groups.
Technical Committees
ISSMGE currently has 40 Technical Committees (TCs) covering a broad range of fundamental, applied, and societal aspects of geotechnical engineering. The TCs bring together specialists from around the world and provide an international platform for technical exchange, collaboration, knowledge development, and dissemination across the different areas of geotechnical engineering.
The principal objectives of the Technical Committees are to:
- Develop and disseminate knowledge and practice within their respective technical fields.
- Establish guidelines and technical recommendations.
- Contribute to the technical programs of ISSMGE international and regional conferences.
- Promote interaction with industry and with other groups working in related specialist areas.
ISSMGE Technical Committees and their broad areas of activity. Circle size indicates the approximate number of members in each TC.
How to Join a Technical Committee
ISSMGE encourages its members to actively participate in Technical Committees. Any ISSMGE member interested in the activities of a TC can express their interest in joining; participation does not require waiting to be invited or nominated.
Members interested in joining a TC should contact their ISSMGE Member Society and request to be nominated as a member or corresponding member of the relevant Technical Committee. It is also recommended to contact the TC Chair and/or Secretary to express their interest and establish direct communication with the TC leadership.
Technical Committees welcome participation from members interested in contributing to their activities, including researchers, practitioners, younger members, and colleagues from all regions.
TAOC Leadership Team
During the 21st International Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (21st ICSMGE), held in Vienna in June 2026, ISSMGE President Prof. Lyesse Laloui appointed Dr Marcelo Sanchez as Chair of the TAOC for the 2026-2030 term. Dr Sanchez previously served as Chair of the TOC during the 2022-2026 term. Following his appointment, Dr Sanchez appointed Dr Mabel Chedid as Vice-Chair and Dr Liuxin (Lucy) Chen as Secretary of TAOC.
Chair
Dr Marcelo Sanchez
Professor and Fred J. Benson Chair, Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Texas A&M University, USA
Vice-Chair
Dr Mabel Chedid
Senior Geotechnical and Tunnel Engineer
WSP, USA
Secretary
Dr Liuxin (Lucy) Chen
Assistant Professor
RMIT University, Australia
TAOC Leadership and Support Team for the 2026-2030 term.
TAOC Vision 2026-2030
TAOC will build on the successful activities of the Technical Committees while encouraging a stronger focus on meaningful technical outcomes and lasting contributions to ISSMGE and the broader geotechnical community.
The approach will be collaborative and bottom-up, recognizing the diversity of disciplines represented within ISSMGE. Individual TCs will be encouraged to identify the areas in which they can make the greatest contribution and to develop outcomes that reflect their particular expertise, priorities, and activities.
Particular emphasis will be placed on strengthening collaboration among TCs, promoting interdisciplinary initiatives, improving communication between the TCs, Member Societies, and the ISSMGE Board, and increasing the visibility and dissemination of TC activities and achievements.
Guidelines for Technical Committees and Honour Lectures
The Guidelines for ISSMGE Technical Committees and ISSMGE Honour Lectures provide the framework for the operation of the Technical Committees, including their organization, membership, leadership, activities, and deliverables, as well as the establishment and selection procedures for ISSMGE Honour Lectures.
The current Guidelines, reviewed in July 2026, are available here:
TAOC Activities and Support for Technical Committees
During the 2026-2030 term, TAOC will continue to advise and monitor the activities of the Technical Committees while developing opportunities for their growth, collaboration, and interaction. The emphasis will be on supporting active and effective TCs and facilitating initiatives that enhance their contribution to ISSMGE and its members.
Regular interaction between TAOC and the TCs will continue through annual TAOC - TC Chairs meetings, providing a forum to discuss ongoing activities, share experiences and good practices, identify common challenges, and explore opportunities for collaboration among TCs.
The Small Projects initiative introduced during the previous term will also continue, providing support for focused activities proposed by the TCs. During the 2026-2030 term, opportunities will be available for larger projects, with funding of up to £5,000 for selected initiatives.
TC leadership teams are responsible for becoming fully familiar with the Guidelines for ISSMGE Technical Committees and ISSMGE Honour Lectures presented in the previous section and for ensuring that the organization and activities of their TCs are conducted in accordance with these Guidelines.
To reflect the international character and diversity of ISSMGE, TC Chairs are strongly encouraged to appoint a Secretary and, where applicable, a Vice-Chair from Member Societies different from that of the Chair and, preferably, from different ISSMGE regions. When selecting Chair-nominated members, TC Chairs are also encouraged to broaden the composition of the committee by considering colleagues from countries, regions, professional sectors, and other groups that are underrepresented within the TC.
TAOC will maintain regular monitoring of TC activities to encourage active engagement with ISSMGE members. Two important milestones in this process will be the mid-term and final reports. These reports will be based on surveys prepared by TAOC and will provide a systematic assessment of TC activities and achievements, allowing the activity and performance of the TCs to be evaluated and compared.
TCs identified as having a low level of activity or being inactive will be invited to meet with TAOC to discuss their status, identify the reasons for limited activity, and consider appropriate actions to revitalize the committee. Where continued inactivity is identified, TAOC may recommend changes in TC leadership to the ISSMGE President in accordance with the Guidelines.
In particular, TCs will be strongly encouraged to:
- hold regular meetings, with at least two meetings per year;
- maintain active and up-to-date webpages;
- organize international conferences, workshops, and other specialist technical events;
- contribute sessions and other activities to ISSMGE international and regional conferences;
- develop technical outputs and initiatives that disseminate knowledge and support professional practice;
- encourage active participation from both academia and industry, as well as younger members and members from different regions; and
- explore opportunities for collaboration and joint initiatives with other TCs and relevant organizations.
ISSMGE Open Access Policy
An essential mission of the ISSMGE is to provide up to date technical and scientific information to contribute to the improvement of knowledge easily available for the profession. Following the ISSMGE Open Access policy (see the ISSMGE Publication and Conference Manual), TCs are strongly encouraged to publish in Open Access their scientific production, and particularly the Proceedings of their Conferences, Symposium and Workshops that they organise. It is also important, and not too difficult, to promote the Proceedings through major databases, as described in this report.
Technical Oversight Committee 2022-2026: Summary
During the 2022-2026 term, the Technical Oversight Committee (TOC) worked closely with the ISSMGE Technical Committees to strengthen the TC network, support effective leadership, promote communication and collaboration, encourage new initiatives, and monitor TC activities and achievements.
The work of the TOC was supported by its Leadership Team, the TOC Support Team, and the ISSMGE Vice-Presidents, whose contributions facilitated communication and interaction with the Technical Committees across the different ISSMGE regions.
TOC Leadership and Support Teams during the 2022-2026 term, together with the ISSMGE Vice-Presidents who supported interaction with the Technical Committees across the different regions.
Strengthening the Technical Committee Network
An important focus during the term was strengthening the operation and governance of the Technical Committees. The Guidelines for ISSMGE Technical Committees and ISSMGE Honour Lectures were revised to clarify procedures for TC Chair elections, introduce a motion of confidence for Chairs seeking a second term, and establish clearer procedures for the selection of Honour Lecturers.
The renewal of TC leadership was actively supported throughout the term. In addition, TC207 and TC208, which were inactive at the beginning of the term, were successfully reactivated with new leadership teams, while two new Technical Committees were established: TC223 Bio-Geotechnics and TC310 Space Geotechnics.
Four new ISSMGE Honour Lectures were also approved during the term: the Scott Sloan Honour Lecture (TC103), the M2M Honour Lecture (TC105), the Sustainability in Geotechnical Engineering Honour Lecture (TC307), and the Intelligent Geotechnics Honour Lecture (TC309).
Interaction and Collaboration among Technical Committees
Strengthening interaction among TCs was another important objective. Information collected through the TC reporting process was used to map existing and planned interactions across the Technical Committee network. The resulting network provided a useful tool for identifying existing collaborations and opportunities for new interdisciplinary activities.
Interactions among ISSMGE Technical Committees during the 20222026 term. The network mapping was used to visualize existing and planned interactions and to identify opportunities for increased collaboration among TCs.
Regular TOC - TC Chairs meetings provided another mechanism for communication and collaboration. At least one meeting was organized each year, with two sessions using the same agenda to accommodate different global time zones. These meetings were used to clarify the Guidelines and operational procedures, discuss TC activities and upcoming events, share successful initiatives, and strengthen interaction between the TOC and the TCs and among the TCs themselves.
Supporting New Initiatives
The TOC introduced funding for small projects to stimulate new TC activities, encourage collaboration, and support innovative initiatives. Three projects illustrate the range of activities supported during the term:
- TC306 Geo-Education received support for an initiative connecting geotechnical engineering education with broader engineering education research, including the participation of Prof. Jennifer Case as a keynote speaker at GEE 2025 and collaboration with TC103 and TC106.
- TC308 Energy Geotechnics received support to develop an open-access GIS platform for mapping energy geotechnics projects worldwide and encouraging contributions and collaboration across several TCs.
- TC211 Ground Improvement received support for the Ground Improvement Through the Lens photography initiative, designed to broaden participation, strengthen academiaindustrypractice engagement, and increase the visibility of contributors and activities within the field.
The TOC also supported and encouraged initiatives developed directly by the TCs. Examples included the TC105 Student Video Competition, the Mark Randolph Award for outstanding PhD research in offshore geotechnics proposed by TC209, and the interdisciplinary Pre-Rankine Conference organized by TC206 in collaboration with several other Technical Committees.
ISSMGE Interactive Technical Talks
The TOC played a leading role in coordinating and supporting the ISSMGE Interactive Technical Talks (IITTs), an educational initiative bringing together early-career and renowned geotechnical engineers from academia and industry. As of July 2026, the talks had generated 27,531 video views, more than 2,500 hours of viewing time, and 2,810 new subscribers through IITT content.
Monitoring TC Activities and Supporting ISSMGE Events
TC activities were monitored through structured surveys and reporting, including mid-term and end-of-term assessments. The information collected provided an overview of TC membership, meetings, technical events, publications, Honour Lectures, collaboration, and other activities, while also helping identify areas where additional support or action was needed.
The TOC also coordinated TC participation in major ISSMGE events, including ECSMGE 2024 in Lisbon, PANAMGEO 2024 in La Serena, and the 21st ICSMGE 2026 in Vienna. This included facilitating opportunities for TC workshops, courses, meetings, technical sessions, and other activities associated with these conferences.
These activities and the experience gained during the 2022-2026 term provided the foundation for the evolution of the Technical Oversight Committee into the Technical Advisory and Outcome Committee (TAOC), with an increased emphasis on collaboration, support, and meaningful technical outcomes.
TOC Final Report 2022-2026
A more comprehensive description of the activities, initiatives, and outcomes of the Technical Oversight Committee during the 2022-2026 term is provided in the Final Report: