Deric Daniel Waters or Dan Waters (; 5 November 1920 – 27 January 2016) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

educator, scholar of building science and heritage conservationist. He was the founding principal of the Morrison Hill Technical Institute in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

from 1969 to 1972, Assistant Director (Technical Education), Education Department of Hong Kong from 1974 to 1980. Waters retired in 1980 and obtained his MPhil from Loughborough University in 1982 and PhD in 1985. He was a Fellow of the Hong Kong Institute of Directors, Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building, Fellow of the

Royal Society for Public Health Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) is an independent, multi-disciplinary charity dedicated to the improvement of the public's health. RSPH helps inform policy and practice, working to educate, empower and support communities and individuals ...

and an Associate Member of the

British Institute of Management The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) is a professional institution for management based in the United Kingdom. The major membership classes are ''Member'', ''Fellow'' - for those with significant expertise - and ''Companion'' - the most sen ...

. Waters had served as the President of the

Royal Asiatic Society The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...

Hong Kong Branch from 1996 to 2001, and remained as an Honorary Fellow of the society. He was appointed as a member of the

Antiquities Advisory Board The Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB) is a statutory body of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region with the responsibility of advising the Antiquities Authority on any matters relating to antiquities and monuments. The AAB was establish ...

between 1990 to 1998. Waters was also an author. He published several books about Hong Kong studies and many articles on the Journal of Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch, as well as articles regarding technical education and building science and conservation.

Early life and career

Waters was born in November 1920 at

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, he had served in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

. In 1939, he was conscripted and sent to the 249 Field Company of Royal Engineers, and shipped to North Africa as part of the Eighth Army. After the North African campaign, he was shipped towards

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Waters landed on Salerno, Italy during

Operation Avalanche Operation Avalanche was the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno, executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy during World War II. The Italians withdrew from the war the day before the invasion, but ...

. At Salerno he was wounded by landmines. After that he took part in the Battle of Anzio. Waters was mentioned in dispatches for his excellent service during the war. In September 1946, he ended his military service in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into prov ...

and returned to England. After the war, Waters returned to his family construction company which was established by his great grandfather in 1853. He became the managing director of the company, in-charge of restoration of old buildings. He also studied at

City College Norwich City College Norwich is a college of further and higher education in Norfolk, England. It is one of the largest colleges in the country. The College has expanded in recent years following mergers with Easton College in 2020 and Paston College ...

and later taught building science there.

Education career

In autumn 1954, Waters joined the

Colonial Service The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...

as Education officer (Technical Education). He set sail to Hong Kong by RMS Canton. When he arrived in Hong Kong, the Education Department of Hong Kong assigned him to the Hong Kong Technical College (today's Hong Kong Polytechnic University) located at Wood Road,

Wan Chai Wan Chai is situated at the western part of the Wan Chai District on the northern shore of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. Its other boundaries are Canal Road to the east, Arsenal Street to the west and Bowen Road to the south. The area n ...

. He worked as a senior lecturer in the Department of Building. In 1963, Waters was promoted to the Head of Department. In 1969, the Education Department appointed Waters as the founding principal of the Morrison Hill Technical Institute (today's IVE (Morrison Hill)). In 1972, he was transferred to the Education Department to oversee the establishment of several technical institutes in Hong Kong. From 1974 to 1980, he was Assistant Director (Technical Education) of the department. Waters retired in 1980 from the

Hong Kong Civil Service The Hong Kong Civil Service is managed by 13 policy bureaux in the Government Secretariat (Hong Kong), Government Secretariat, and 67 departments and agencies, mostly staffed by civil servants. The Secretary for the Civil Service (SCS) is one of t ...

. One year later he was awarded the Imperial Service Order for his long and meritorious services for the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

Study back in England

After Water's retirement, he studied at the Department of Education,

Loughborough University of Technology Loughborough University (abbreviated as ''Lough'' or ''Lboro'' for post-nominals) is a public research university in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. It has been a university since 1966, but it dates back to 1909, when ...

. He obtained

Master of Philosophy The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil ...

in 1982 and

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

in 1985. Waters's Master's thesis was entitled "''The technical institutes in Hong Kong 1969 to 1980: A study of their development''" and his Doctoral thesis was "''The planning of craft and technician education in Hong Kong 1957 to 1982''".

Heritage conservation career

Waters was a member of the Hong Kong Antiquities Advisory Board between 1990-1998. In 1998, the former

Chief Executive of Hong Kong The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is the representative of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and head of the Government of Hong Kong. The position was created to replace the office of governor of ...

Tung Chee-hwa Tung Chee-hwa (; born 7 July 1937) is a Hong Kong businessman and politician who served as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong between 1997 and 2005, upon the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July. He is currently a vice-chairman of the Chin ...

awarded Waters

Bronze Bauhinia Star The Bronze Bauhinia Star (, BBS) is the lowest rank in Order of the Bauhinia Star in Hong Kong, created in 1997 to replace the British honours system of the Order of the British Empire after the transfer of sovereignty to People's Republic of C ...

for his valuable contribution to the work of heritage conservation in Hong Kong and for his long and dedicated service as a member of the Antiquities Advisory Board.

Personal life and death

Waters married Vera Chan Lai-hing on April 21, 1960 at Hong Kong St. Anthony's Church. At 57, Waters earned his black belt in Karate. In January 2006, the Waters held a talk on "''One couple two cultures : Western-Chinese couples talk about love and marriage''", co-organized by Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch and

Hong Kong Public Libraries The Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL; ) is a system of 70 static and 12 mobile public libraries in Hong Kong. Offering a total collection of 14.35 million items, the system is managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. The ne ...

, which is recorded in the ''Hong Kong Oral History Collection'' of the Library. On 27 January 2016, Waters died in Hong Kong, at aged 94. A lamp at the lawn near Li Ka Shing Tower of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University was named after him in recognition of his remarkable contribution to education.

Honours and awards

Civilian Honours

* A Companion of the Imperial Service Order (ISO) (1981) * The

(1998)

Institution awards and recognition

* Associate Member of the

* Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building * Fellow of the Hong Kong Institute of Directors * Fellow of the

* Honorary Fellow of the

* Honorary Fellow,

Lingnan University Lingnan University (LN/LU), formerly called Lingnan College, is a public liberal arts university in Hong Kong. It aims to provide students with an education in the liberal arts tradition and has joined the Global Liberal Arts Alliance since ...

(2014) * Construction Industry Honorary Award, Chartered Institute of Building (Hong Kong Branch) (2014)

Military Honours

War Medal 1939–1945 The War Medal 1939–1945 is a campaign medal which was instituted by the United Kingdom on 16 August 1945, for award to citizens of the British Commonwealth who had served full-time in the Armed Forces or the Merchant Navy for at least 28 days ...

with

Mention in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

* Defence Medal *

1939–1945 Star The 1939–1945 Star is a military campaign medal instituted by the United Kingdom on 8 July 1943 for award to British and Commonwealth forces for service in the Second World War. Two clasps were instituted to be worn on the medal ribbon, Batt ...

Africa Star The Africa Star is a military campaign medal, instituted by the United Kingdom on 8 July 1943 for award to British and Commonwealth forces who served in North Africa between 10 June 1940 and 12 May 1943 during the Second World War. Three clasp ...

Italy Star The Italy Star is a military campaign medal, instituted by the United Kingdom in May 1945 for award to British Commonwealth forces who served in the Italian Campaign from 1943 to 1945, during the Second World War. The Second World War Stars On ...

Publications

* ''Understanding Technical English'' (1973) * ''21st Century Management: Keeping Ahead of the Japanese and Chinese'' (1991) * ''The Economics and Financing of Hong Kong Education'' (1992) * ''Faces of Hong Kong: An Old Hand's Reflections'' (1995) * ''One couple two cultures : 81 Western-Chinese couples talk about love and marriage'' (2005)

References

External links

Dan Waters page on the Vocational Training Council website

Dan Waters academic publication on the Vocational Training Council VPET Repository
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waters, Deric Daniel 1920 births 2016 deaths Military personnel from Norwich People from Norwich Alumni of Loughborough University Royal Engineers soldiers 20th-century Hong Kong people Academic staff of Hong Kong Polytechnic University Companions of the Imperial Service Order Recipients of the Bronze Bauhinia Star Fellows of the Royal Asiatic Society Fellows of the Royal Society for Public Health British Army personnel of World War II