that they can share a global pool of knowledge and experience. The aim is to foster continued improvement in the quality of public works and wider community services. The inaugural meeting was held in 1960 at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris. Membership has grown steadily and in 2009 comprised representatives from national associations in: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Italy, Israel, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Southern Africa (South Africa, Botawana, Namibia & Zimbabwe), Sweden, UK (England, Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland) and USA. Belgium and San Marino are presently Corresponding Members. Related disciplines Municipal or urban engineering combines elements of environmental engineering, water resources engineering and transport engineering. Today, municipal engineering may be confused with urban design or urban planning. Whereas the urbanist or urban planner may design the general layout of streets and public places, the municipal engineer is concerned with the detailed design. For example, in the case of the design of a new street, the urbanist may specify the general layout of the street, including landscaping, surface finishings and urban accessories, but the municipal engineer will prepare the detailed plans and specifications for the roads, sidewalks, municipal services and street lighting. Site civil works In the case of large buildings or plants, facilities or campuses, site civil works may be required that are similar in scope or type as municipal infrastructure, namely, access roads, parking lots, potable water supply (including fire hydrants), on-site waste water treatment plants, site drainage including sedimentation and retention ponds or basins, etc. In most engineering consulting firms, Structural Engineering and Municipal Infrastructure are typically separate departments. On a large construction project, the civil engineering design will typically be divided into a structural portion, designed by structural engineers and typically focused on the buildings, and "civil" portion, designed by municipal engineers and focused on the site. See also The French School of Urban Engineering Sources Index to the Proceedings of the Institution of Municipal Engineers, from 1874 The municipal and sanitary engineer's handbook (1883) References Engineering disciplines Public services Civil engineering