The NEA invited 17 young professionals under the age of 30, representing 14 countries, to join ministers, senior government representatives, industry leaders and experts at the Roadmaps to New Nuclear 2024 conference on 19-20 September in Paris, France.
The “youth corner” at Roadmaps to New Nuclear 2024.
Photo: Ruvan Wijesooriya for the NEA
Forming the Young Professionals Delegation, the group engaged in conversations on the concrete actions needed to tackle the most pressing issues to advance nuclear new build projects.
The Young Professionals Delegation with Ebba Busch, Swedish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Energy, Business and Industry.
Photo: Ruvan Wijesooriya for the NEA
During the conference, the delegation had a chance to meet event co-chairs Ebba Busch, Swedish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Energy, Business and Industry, and NEA Director-General William D. Magwood, IV, as well as other leaders in the sector.
The Young Professionals Delegation participated in the breakout session entitled “Plan 2035: Building a diverse, inclusive, and gender-balanced workforce”, which shed light on the new NEA initiative “Plan 2035” designed to assist NEA member countries in building the diverse, inclusive and gender-balanced workforce necessary to fulfil their nuclear technology policies. The session also highlighted female-led projects from the Women in Nuclear (WiN) and Women in Renewable Energy (WIRE) networks, Indigenous-led projects from First Nations Power Authority (FNPA) in Canada, as well as youth-led projects by Women in Nuclear Young Generation (WiN YG) and Nuclear4Climate (N4C). Young Professionals Delegation spokesperson Abdulla Al Nuaimi participated in a fireside chat with Jan var der Lee, Executive Director of the International Institute of Nuclear Energy, noting: “The nuclear sector should look like our delegation today: diverse, gender-balanced and coming from different backgrounds.”
The delegation also presented a formal statement calling upon key stakeholders to commit to sustaining the “Plan 2035” goals and to creating a Roadmaps to Global Nuclear Talent Pool based on the values of diversity, inclusion, equity and regional justice on all levels of the nuclear sector skillset.
Young professionals during a visit to NAAREA.
Photo: Ruvan Wijesooriya for the NEA
On the margins of the conference, the Young Professionals Delegation visited NAAREA (Nuclear Abundant Affordable Resourceful Energy for All) and CEA (Commissariat à l’énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives) laboratories where they were introduced to the latest advancements in the industry.
.
