To accomplish its mission, the Association promotes cooperation among individuals and groups concerned with structural engineering and related fields. It encourages the awareness of structural engineers about the needs of society and the environment (
Declaration for Sustainable Development). To accomplish its mission, the Associaton may establish a
Long Range Plan.
IABSE organises conferences, symposia, colloquia, workshops and seminars, by itself or with other organisations. In order to encourage the active participation of young engineers to the symposia, IABSE offers young engineers a programme with substantial reductions and grants covering the registrations fees. The Association publishes reports of the papers presented at these events and also other technical books.
Another important task is the publication of the highly recognised journal Structural Engineering International, which is reviewed by the SEI Editorial Board. Like in most associations, it is active committee work that makes the heartbeat of IABSE. The committees meet at least once a year at the annual meetings, which are held in combination with the yearly major conference.
Also on this yearly occasion, IABSE presents annual awards for achievements in research and practice, to advance the profession of structural engineering
