Sustainable development aims to meet our current needs while ensuring that future generations have the resources to meet their needs. Achieving such a future is a complex process, which involves balancing economic growth, social equity, and environmental protection, in a way that benefits both current and future generations. A recent IAEA school helped several countries build capacity to meet this challenge, addressing long-term strategic planning of sustainable nuclear energy systems at the national, regional, and global levels.
About 30 young professionals working in the nuclear energy industry, researchers, students and lecturers from technical universities from 24 countries took part in this annual, week-long ICTP-IAEA INPRO School on Strategic Planning for Sustainable Nuclear Energy Development. Run jointly with the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), the school took place in June, at the ICTP's headquarters in Trieste, Italy. The school is part of the IAEA's International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO) and aims to familiarize participants with the basic concepts, methodology and tools for performing modelling, analysis and sustainability assessments of nuclear energy systems.
"The school consistently expanded my perspective, skills and knowledge," Mark Amoah Nyasapoh from the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission said. "I am now better prepared to make meaningful, well-founded recommendations that will effectively facilitate Ghana's pursuit of a sustainable energy transition."
During the training course, nine experts from the IAEA and the international community covered the most important topics related to strategic planning for sustainable energy programmes, including technical and institutional innovations in nuclear energy, as well as technical and national approaches to the nuclear fuel cycle. The school concluded with group presentations designed to encourage participants to share their findings and experiences of the INPRO methods and tools.
"The INPRO methodology helps us understand real work situations," said Wasin Vechgama from Thailand's Institute of Nuclear Technology (TINT). "INPRO tools and simulators are great at illustrating how to combine existing energy technologies to find the best solutions for nuclear newcomers."
The school also provided an opportunity for participants to meet and network with their peers and international nuclear experts, enriching their understanding of the field and providing opportunities for further career advancement and collaborations.
"As a student from a developing country, access to specialized courses like this is often limited," explained Ruth Achieng Okoth from Kenya's Nuclear Power and Energy Agency. "This multicultural setting provides a unique platform for cultural exchange, meaningful networking and collaboration."
Background
Nuclear energy is a reliable, clean and competitive source of energy that can support the realization of sustainable development. Its use, however, requires a comprehensive evaluation of a wide range of issues covering technology, economics, safety, proliferation, and waste management. Strategic long-term planning, covering the lifecycle of the nuclear energy system, is thus necessary to ensure that the nuclear energy system is fully aligned with sustainable development.
INPRO, established in 2000, has a goal of ensuring a sustainable nuclear energy supply to help meet 21st century global energy needs. INPRO's activities are centred on the key concepts of global nuclear energy sustainability and the development of long-range nuclear energy strategies, covering the complete lifecycle, so that nuclear energy is and remains available to meet national energy needs.
