Sunday Welcome Reception

Senator Risch began his career in public service at the age of 27, when he was elected to two terms as Ada County prosecuting attorney. Following his tenure as president of the Idaho Prosecuting Attorneys Association, he served 11 elected terms in the Idaho State Senate. His time as senator was highlighted by his quick election to the leadership positions of majority leader and Senate president pro tempore, serving in the top two positions of Senate leadership for 19 of his 22 years.

Senator Risch earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry from the University of Idaho, and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Idaho, College of Law. He served on Law Review and the College of Law Advisory Committee at the University of Idaho and has taught criminal law at Boise State University. He was a small business owner, a rancher/farmer and senior partner in the Risch Goss Insinger Gustavel Law firm at the time of his election to the U.S. Senate.

Day 1

Opening Plenary Speakers

Monday’s program will include an Opening Plenary schedule of international policy, regulatory, industry, and communications leaders. Dr. Kathryn McCarthy, Plenary Program Chair, will provide a Plenary Welcome address on behalf of Canadian Nuclear Laboratories; Dr. John Kelly, President of ANS will provide a welcome address on behalf of ANS; and Dr. Mark Peters, Conference Chairman and Laboratory Director at Idaho National Laboratory will provide a welcome address on behalf of Idaho National Laboratory.

Prior to assuming the duties of Chief Technology Officer, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Reactor Technologies. His office was responsible for the civilian nuclear reactor research and development portfolio, which included programs on Small Modular Reactors, Light Water Reactors, and Generation IV reactors. Additional responsibilities included the design, development, and production of radioisotope power systems, principally for NASA missions.

In the international arena, Dr. Kelly chaired the Generation IV International Forum and former chair of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Standing Advisory Group on Nuclear Energy.

Prior to joining the Department of Energy in 2010, Dr. Kelly spent 30 years at Sandia National Laboratories, where he was engaged in a broad spectrum of research programs in nuclear reactor safety, advanced nuclear energy technology, and national security.

In the reactor safety field, he led efforts to establish the scientific basis for assessing the risks of nuclear power plant operation and specifically those risks associated with potential severe accident scenarios. His research focused on core melt progression phenomena, which led to an improved understanding of the Three Mile Island accident and, more recently, the Fukushima Dai-Ichi accident.

In the advanced nuclear energy technology field, he led efforts to develop advanced concepts for space nuclear power, Generation IV reactors, and proliferation-resistant and safe fuel cycles. These research activities explored new technologies aimed at improving the safety and affordability of nuclear power. In the national security field, he led national efforts to evaluate the safety and technical viability of tritium production technologies.

Dr. Kelly received his B.S. in nuclear engineering from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and his Ph.D. in nuclear engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Dr. Kathryn McCarthy is Vice-President Research & Development and Laboratory Director for the Canadian Nuclear Laboratories.

From February 2012 to January 2017 she was Director of Domestic Programs for Nuclear Science and Technology (NS&T) at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), and the Director of the Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program Technical Integration Office for the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE).  Prior to that she was Deputy Associate Laboratory Director for NS&T at INL, National Technical Director for the Systems Analysis Campaign for the DOE-NE Fuel Cycle R&D Program, and was involved in various other nuclear fission and fusion programs before that; she was employed at the INL for 25 years. She received her B.S. in Nuclear Engineering at the University of Arizona; M.S. and Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles.  Dr. McCarthy was a Guest Scientist at the Kernforschungszentrum in Karlsruhe, Germany, March-September 1989, worked in the Soviet Union with the Department of Energy US/USSR Young Scientist Program (September 1989-August 1990), at the Efremov and Kurchatov Institutes in Russia, and the Latvian Academy of Science in Latvia.

Dr. McCarthy is a member of the American Nuclear Society (ANS), and has held multiple offices at the local and national level. Her awards include the an ANS Presidential citation in 2015 for “Leadership and guidance of the Light Water Reactor Sustainability effort….that has helped set the stage for US power companies to be able to make informed decisions regarding subsequent license renewal for their operating nuclear units…,” 2011 Nuclear Energy Advocate of the Year Award (given by the Partnership for Science and Technology), the 2011 Girl Scouts of Silver Sage Women of Today and Tomorrow Award, an American Nuclear Society Presidential Citation in 2007 for “…outstanding service to the ANS,” the 2000 ANS Women’s Achievement Award, 1996 International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor U.S. Home Team Leadership Award, and the 1994 David Rose Award for Excellence in Fusion Engineering.

Dr. Mark Peters is laboratory director at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). He is responsible for management and integration of a large, multipurpose national laboratory, with a mission focus in nuclear energy, national and homeland security, and energy and environmental science and technology. He manages an organization of 4,200 staff and multiple nuclear and non-nuclear experimental facilities, with an annual budget of more than $1 billion. Peters serves as a senior advisor to the U.S. Department of Energy on nuclear energy technologies and research and development programs, and nuclear waste policy. As a recognized expert in nuclear fuel cycle technologies and nuclear waste management, Peters is called upon frequently to provide expert testimony to Congress in formulation of policies for nuclear fuel cycles, nonproliferation and nuclear waste disposal. Peters was honored in 2015 as a Fellow of the American Nuclear Society for outstanding accomplishments in the area of nuclear science and technology. Peters serves as chairman of the National Laboratory Directors Council Executive Committee.

Morning Session Speakers

Advancing and Sustaining Nuclear Energy—Government Perspectives

Kristine L. Svinicki is an American nuclear engineer and current chairwoman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Kristine began her career as an energy engineer for the state of Wisconsin at the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. She worked as a nuclear engineer in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Washington, D.C. Offices of Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology, and of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, as well as its Idaho Operations Office. She served as a staff member on the Senate Armed Services Committee for Senator John Warner and Senator John McCain.

She was sworn in as a commissioner of the NRC on March 28, 2008, and for a second term ending June 30, 2017. She was designated chairwoman by President Donald Trump on January 23, 2017. On June 26, 2017, she was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to a five-year term as the NRC’s chairperson.

Kristine earned a bachelor’s degree in nuclear engineering from the University of Michigan in 1988.

Ramzi Jammal
Chief of Regulatory Operations, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (Canada)

Ramzi Jammal has worked for the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) since 1998, holding progressively senior positions. He has accumulated over 35 years of experience in the nuclear industry, combining management skills with scientific expertise, and representing the CNSC in various international activities. These include the co-chairing of the IAEA Fukushima report, leading Canadian delegations to the Conventions of Nuclear Safety, and the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Nuclear Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive waste management.

Currently, Mr. Jammal is the President of the Convention on Nuclear Safety as elected by the Contracting parties in 2016 and will continue the presidency until October 2018. He also sits on the IAEA Commission on Safety Standards. He was instrumental in the development and establishment of the IAEA Code of Conduct for the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources, and the international categorization of radioactive sources. He also played a key role in ensuring that the recommendations of the International Commission on Radiation Protection complemented the CNSC’s regulatory needs.

As the Chief Regulatory Operations Officer, he led the development of the CNSC regulatory action plan in response to the Fukushima Daiichi accident. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Physics, a Masters in Medical Physics and a Masters of Business Administration.

In her role as Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor in the Office of Nuclear Energy, Suzanne serves as the Political Liaison between the Office of Nuclear Energy and the Secretary of Energy, as well as the White House.  She provides political and strategic leadership to the office and manages outreach and educational efforts in the area of civil nuclear energy.

Prior to her role with the U.S. Department of Energy, Suzanne served as the Indiana State Campaign Director for the Trump Pence campaign.   The Indiana campaign had historic results in being the first to report a win for the President in the General Election; as well as the state that secured enough delegate votes for President Trump to become the Republican nominee for President in the Primary Election.

Prior to running the Indiana Trump Pence campaign, Ms. Jaworowski served as the Communications and Government Affairs Director for Sunrise Coal, LLC / Hallador Energy Company.  In 2016 she ran for Indiana State Senate and for nearly 15 years she ran a successful marketing and communications business.

Marco Presutti
Director General of the Electricity Resources Branch, Energy Sector.

Over the past seventeen years, Marco has held various positions in the federal public service with both Natural Resources Canada and Environment Canada. In his current role as the Director General of Electricity Resources Branch, he manages Canada’s interests and responsibilities related to electrical and nuclear energy, as well as uranium and radioactive waste. He is responsible for the formulation of national policies, strategies, legislation and regulation at the federal level, and represents Canada’s interests in domestic and international fora. He also oversees a suite of federal programs that fund clean electricity projects across Canada. Marco holds an MA in Public Administration from Carleton University and a BA in Political Science from York University.

Advancing and Sustaining Nuclear Energy—Industry Perspective

Nathan Myhrvold is vice-chairman of TerraPower, a leading nuclear innovation company, and CEO and cofounder of Intellectual Ventures, a technology invention and commercialization company. Prior to founding Intellectual Ventures, Myhrvold spent 14 years at Microsoft, where he founded Microsoft Research and numerous technology groups and served as chief strategist and chief technology officer. An avid inventor and scientist, Myhrvold has more than 800 U.S. patents and has published peer-reviewed research in paleontology, climate science, planetary science, and other areas.

As a postdoctoral fellow in the department of applied mathematics and theoretical physics at Cambridge University, Myhrvold worked with Professor Stephen Hawking on quantum theories of gravitation. He earned a doctorate in theoretical and mathematical physics and a master’s degree in mathematical economics from Princeton University, and he also has a master’s degree in geophysics and space physics and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from UCLA.

Myhrvold has published four acclaimed books on the science of food and cooking. Modernist Cuisine (2011) and Modernist Cuisine at Home (2012) brought Modernist cooking techniques, inspired by science, to professional and home chefs. His most recent book, Modernist Bread (2018) is a five-volume, 2,600-page compendium on bread and breadmaking. Myhrvold is also a well-known food photographer whos work is sold through the Modernist Cuisine Galleries.

In addition to his culinary writing, Myhrvold often writes essays and columns on technology, science, and policy. His work has been published by Bloomberg, Scientific American, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and others.

William (Bill) Fox is SNC-Lavalin’s Executive Vice-President, Nuclear. He oversees all operations carried out by the Canadian Nuclear business unit, including the design and delivery of CANDU reactors, life extension projects, plant life management programs and tools, and operation and maintenance services (both BOP and NSP) for existing BWR/PWR and CANDU nuclear power stations across Canada and in key international markets. Bill is a seasoned engineer and executive with nearly 40 years of energy and nuclear power industry experience, including design engineering, procurement, construction, and safety culture leadership experience, with the rare background of working directly with utilities, original equipment suppliers, and architect/engineers. Bill began his career with almost 20 years at Duke Energy, leaving as Vice-President, Major Projects & Technologies. He went on to be Senior Vice President and Project Director at Chicago Bridge & Iron (CB&I) managing a large EPC contract. From there, he was President, Technical Services and Nuclear Energy & CEO Generation mPower for BWX Technologies. In addition to the many leadership roles, Bill has a unique experience of working with a nuclear utility, and OEM and A/E. Bill is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and of the American Nuclear Society (ANS); he is a Registered Professional Engineer in four US states. He is also a past Board Member of the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), Nuclear Fuel Services (a BWXT Company) and several other joint venture companies in the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Office of Environmental Management (EM) and Office of Nuclear Energy. He has completed a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Civil Engineering from the University of South Carolina from 1976 to 1978, previously completing his Associate of Science (AS), PreEngineering again from the University of South Carolina from 1974 to 1976.

Sang-Wook Han
Executive Vice President, Korean Hydro and Nuclear Power (Korea)

Mr. HAN Sangwook is the Executive Vice President of KHNP (Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power).

Mr. HAN brings more than 30 years of proven performance within the nuclear industry. He received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Chon-Buk National University, and joined KEPCO(Korea Electric Power Corporation) in 1985. Mr. HAN spent 15 years at Nuclear Power Plant working in plant operations and engineering. Also, he was involved in global business of KHNP from 1996 to 2003.

In 2015, Mr. HAN was appointed Vice President of Plant Strategy Project Office. After this positon, he was assigned as Director General, Nuclear Power PlantⅢ, Hanbit Nuclear Power Site in 2017.

Currently, as the Executive Vice President of Technology & Engineering Division, he is responsible for technology policy and plant engineering of KHNP.

Zengguang Lei
Chief Engineer, China National Nuclear Corporation (China)

Mr. Lei was born in April 1961.

In 1986, he graduated from Tsinghua University, with a Master’s Degree in Isotope Separation, and started his career at the Technology Section in Shanxi Uranium Enrichment Company, holding positions including Assistant Engineer, Engineer and Senior Engineer.

In 1997, Mr. Lei became Deputy Chief Engineer of the Company and was appointed as Vice President in 2001.

In 2002, he joined Institute of Physical-Chemical Engineering as its President.

Since 2010, he has been Chief Engineer of CNNC and Vice President of CNS.

Takuya Hattori
Senior Advisor of Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, Inc. (JAIF)

Takuya Hattori is Senior Advisor of Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, Inc. (JAIF).

Before taking his current position, Mr. Hattori was President of JAIF from 2007 to 2015.  He also served as President of JAIF International Cooperation Center (JAIF-ICC) for six years since 2009.

JAIF is the private-sector organization for the Japanese nuclear industry to promote peaceful use of nuclear power.

Prior to joining JAIF, Mr. Hattori served as Executive Vice President of Tokyo Electric Power Co. Inc. (TEPCO). He has 36 years of experience in nuclear power generation at TEPCO.

Dale Atkinson
Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nuclear Officer, NuScale Power (US)

Dale Atkinson, chief operating officer & chief nuclear officer, joined NuScale Power in 2014. In his current position, he is responsible for Operations, Engineering, Projects, Supply Chain Services, Quality Assurance, Human Resources and Regulatory Affairs.

Prior to assuming this position, Atkinson served as vice president of Energy Business & Services, vice president of Employee Development & Corporate Services, vice president of Nuclear Generation & Chief Nuclear Officer, vice president of Technical Services, Engineering manager, Quality manager, and Reactor Engineering/Fuels manager at Energy Northwest.

Before joining Energy Northwest, Atkinson was a supervisor of Nuclear Startup Testing with General Electric for six years. He also provided consulting services on initial power plant testing to several utilities. Atkinson has 39 years’ experience in the nuclear power industry including five years of service as an officer serving on nuclear attack submarines in the U.S. Navy.

Atkinson holds a bachelor’s degree in nuclear engineering from Oregon State University.

International Perspectives on Nuclear Communications Speakers

Mimi Limbach is president and managing partner of Potomac Communications Group, which serves clients in the nuclear energy and science, engineering, energy and infrastructure industries. She is particularly known for her work in helping organizations weather serious crises, making nuclear energy accessible to the public and applying risk communication principles to nuclear energy communications.

She is past president of the Pacific Nuclear Council (PNC) and is chair of the Council’s Communications Working Group. Mimi received the American Nuclear Society’s (ANS) Distinguished Service Award as well as the ANS Presidential Citation for her outstanding contributions in improving communications for the Society and the nuclear energy industry. She currently is chair of the ANS International Committee. She has served on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Civil Nuclear Trade Advisory Committee since 2015.

She has served in many leadership roles in both corporate and energy communications. As vice president of corporate communications, she helped Navigant Consulting weather a series of financial crises and top leadership changes as it built its energy business.

Mimi had a 25-year career with Westinghouse Electric Corporation, leading corporate communications as the company transformed itself into today’s CBS media conglomerate. At Westinghouse, she led the media campaign with policy makers and opinion leaders that helped achieve normal trade relations between the U.S. and China for civilian nuclear power and paved the way for Westinghouse to export its nuclear energy plants to China. She defused crises on governance, major litigation, oil spills, radioactive emissions and nuclear materials. Earlier in her career, she led strategic and marketing communications and public relations for Westinghouse’s $5 billion global energy business.

Tim Ferris
Journalist, Author, Producer and Nuclear Advocate (US)

Timothy Ferris is the author of a dozen books – among them The Science of Liberty and the bestsellers The Whole Shebang and Coming of Age in the Milky Way, which have been translated into fifteen languages and were named by The New York Times as among the leading books published in the twentieth century.  He also edited the anthologies Best American Science Writing 2001 and the World Treasury of Physics, Astronomy, and Mathematics.

A former editor of Rolling Stone magazine, Ferris has published over 200 articles and essays in The New Yorker, Time, Newsweek, Forbes, Harper’s, Scientific American, Vanity Fair, The Nation, The New Republic, The New York Review of Books, and other periodicals.

His three PBS documentary films—”The Creation of the Universe,” (1986), “Life Beyond Earth” (1999), and “Seeing in the Dark” (2007)—have been seen by over twenty million viewers.

Ferris produced the Voyager phonograph record, an artifact of human civilization containing music and sounds of Earth launched aboard the twin Voyager interstellar spacecraft.  Now exiting the solar system, the Voyagers are the most distant probes ever created by humans.

Called “the best popular science writer in the English language” by The Christian Science Monitor and “the best science writer of his generation” by The Washington Post, Ferris has received the American Institute of Physics prize and a Guggenheim Fellowship.  His works have been nominated for the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize.

A Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Professor Ferris has taught in five disciplines–astronomy, English, history, journalism, and philosophy–at four universities.  He is currently an emeritus professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

John Barret
President and CEO,
Canadian Nuclear Association

Dr. John Barrett is President and CEO of the Canadian Nuclear Association (CNA). His career in the Canadian public service includes Foreign Affairs, National Defence, and the Privy Council Office. In addition, he was in the International Staff of NATO and Deputy Director of the Canadian Centre for Arms Control & Disarmament.

Before joining the industry association, Dr. Barrett was Canada’s Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, where he chaired the IAEA’s Board of Governors; as well as Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization and to the United Nations in Vienna. He served as Canada’s Ambassador to Austria and to the Slovak Republic.

Dr. Barrett has a BA and MA from the University of Toronto, and a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics. He is a Board Director of the World Institute of Nuclear Security (WINS) and holds the Institute for Corporate Directors ICD.D designation.

Laura Hermann
Partner
Potomac Communications (US)

Laura is a writer, trainer and strategist. She focuses on communication challenges that are unique to large-scale, long-term infrastructure projects. Laura works with clients to prepare strategic communication plans that respond to controversial issues while strengthening public acceptance, stakeholder confidence and investor support. After seven years of increasing responsibility at PCG, she became a partner at the firm.

Laura focuses on strategic communications for the firm’s energy, engineering and technology clients. She facilitates research that helps clients define their communication objectives and integrates public speaking, broadcast, print and online media opportunities into long-term education campaigns that meet those goals. She taught in the Undergraduate Leadership Program at Northwestern as an adjunct faculty member.

She is active on the membership committee of the American Nuclear Society.

Kirsty Gogan
Co-Founder and Global Director, Energy for Humanity (US)

Kirsty is co-founder and executive director of Energy for Humanity, a UK and Switzerland based non-profit organisation with a global outlook focused on solving climate change and enabling universal access to modern energy services. Energy for Humanity advocates for evidence-based, whole-system, and technology-inclusive solutions in pursuit of the fastest, most cost-effective, and most feasible outcomes for people and nature. EFH was shortlisted for the Business Green Leaders “Green NGO of the Year” Award in 2016. At COP23, EFH published a new report on European Climate Leadership 2017 and presented a new study on Decarbonizing Cities with Advanced Nuclear. Kirsty is also founding director of CleanTech Catalyst (a climate and energy consultancy now renamed LucidCatalyst), recently commissioned by the UK Energy Technologies Institute to lead the Nuclear Cost Drivers Study in partnership with Lucid Strategy (based in Cambridge, MA). This Study has since been highlighted in the UK Nuclear Sector Deal.

Kirsty has more than 15 years’ experience as a senior advisor to industry, non-profits and Government, where she ran the national public consultation on nuclear new build, reviewed the national communications response to Fukushima and revised national guidance for civil nuclear emergency planning and response. She is currently Chair of Nuclear Innovation Research Advisory Board (NIRAB) Cost Reduction Working Group.

Millennial Nuclear Caucus Goes Global Speakers

In her role as Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor in the Office of Nuclear Energy, Suzanne serves as the Political Liaison between the Office of Nuclear Energy and the Secretary of Energy, as well as the White House.  She provides political and strategic leadership to the office and manages outreach and educational efforts in the area of civil nuclear energy.

Prior to her role with the U.S. Department of Energy, Suzanne served as the Indiana State Campaign Director for the Trump Pence campaign.   The Indiana campaign had historic results in being the first to report a win for the President in the General Election; as well as the state that secured enough delegate votes for President Trump to become the Republican nominee for President in the Primary Election.

Prior to running the Indiana Trump Pence campaign, Ms. Jaworowski served as the Communications and Government Affairs Director for Sunrise Coal, LLC / Hallador Energy Company.  In 2016 she ran for Indiana State Senate and for nearly 15 years she ran a successful marketing and communications business.

Lenka Kollar
Director for Business Strategy, NuScale Power (US)

Lenka Kollar is the Director of Strategy & External Relations at NuScale Power where she is working to bring NuScale’s small modular reactor to market through business development and clean energy outreach. Previously, Ms. Kollar has held positions at the International Atomic Energy Agency, U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration, and Argonne National Laboratory. She also consulted with public and private sector organizations on nuclear energy policy, public communications, and marketing strategy. Ms. Kollar obtained her BS and MS in Nuclear Engineering from Purdue University and MBA from INSEAD. She is currently International Relations and External Communications Chair of the International Youth Nuclear Congress and on the Board of Directors for Generation Atomic.

Grace K. Meikle
Director for International Business Development
Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (Canada)

Grace Meikle is Director for International Business Development at Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), Canada’s lead nuclear research and development laboratory located in Chalk River, Ontario, Canada. In this role, she develops new business between CNL and international entities to provide nuclear technology solutions in the areas of energy, environment, health, and security, with a focus on the Asian market.

Previously, from 2016 until early 2018, she worked as a Liaison for International Nuclear Energy Cooperation for Idaho National Laboratory (INL). While at INL, she was contracted to the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington, DC. There she helped develop strategies to promote U.S. civil nuclear exports and technology, and oversaw U.S. civil nuclear R&D cooperation with other countries.

Prior to working at INL, Grace was a radiation worker and wireline field specialist for Schlumberger oilfield services in the oil sands of northern Alberta, Canada from 2014-2016.

Grace received her Bachelors of Science in Physics and Chinese from the University of Notre Dame, class of 2014. She has international and technical experience working on nanomaterials at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China in 2013 and the University of Tokyo in Tokyo, Japan in 2012. She also previously worked as a supply chain specialist for RelyOn Solar, an off-grid solar start-up based in Pune, India in 2011.

Grace maintains a blog focused on energy issues, energenie.net, and is involved in nuclear advocacy efforts in the United States and Canada.

Ayako Takeuchi
Nuclear Attaché, Embassy of Japan in the United States (Japan)

Ayako Takeuchi is a Nuclear Attaché, a Third Secretary at the Science Section of the Embassy of Japan in the United States since May 2017 and is responsible for U.S.-Japan cooperation in the nuclear field. Prior to her current role, she served as a researcher at the International Nuclear Cooperation Section at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo from 2015 to 2017, where she managed the IAEA technical cooperation projects for East-Asian developing countries. Before joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she served as a research project coordinator at Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) at the Oarai Research Center from 2013 to 2015, and as an administrative staff at the Personnel Division at JAEA Tokai Research Center from 2011 to 2013. Through her career at JAEA, she was involved in educating younger generations of both Japanese and non-Japanese outside of the JAEA by managing a number of training courses for young researchers and university students. She was also a member of JAEA’s cross-sectional group which provides basic nuclear energy lessons and other related activities for elementary school and junior high school students.

Ms. Takeuchi graduated from the Faculty of Political Science and Economics of Waseda University in 2011.

Joon Seok Kang
Operations Training Support Specialist, UAE Barakah Project (South Korea)

Joon Seok Kang is on the APR1400 Licensing Team to support the design certification project to gain approval of construction and operation in the United States by US Nuclear Regulatory Commission which was successfully submitted and got accepted for design certification in April 2015. Mr. Kang also managed overseas consulting contracts with Westinghouse, Exelon, Talisman, and Enercon.

Wei Jiang
Product Manager, Nuclear Advanced Safety Platform I&C,
Nuclear Power Institute of China
(China)

Mr. Jiang has been Product Manager for NASPIC research and development since 2015, developing products to supply to nuclear power plants in China, including ACP1000, AP1000, M310, CPR100, and ACP100S. Mr. Jiang previously served as Senior Engineer for research in core cooling and monitoring systems (CCMS) from 2012, during which he developed the CCMS system for the ACP1000.  He graduated from Northeastern University in the United States with a major in Computer Science and Technology. His hobbies include playing badminton and performing tea ceremony.

Day 2:

Morning Session

Advancing Nuclear Energy Morning Session–I Speakers

Dr. Rita Baranwal joined Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in August 2016 as the Director for the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) initiative and has 20 years of experience in the nuclear energy industry. She is responsible for providing the nuclear industry and other stakeholders access to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) state-of-the-art research & development (R&D) expertise, capabilities, and infrastructure to achieve faster and cost-effective development, demonstration, and ultimate deployment of innovative nuclear energy technologies.

Prior to joining INL, Dr. Baranwal served as Director of Technology Development and Application at Westinghouse. There, she led the creation and development of game-changing technologies and managed characterization and hot cell laboratories to support Westinghouse, its customers and the nuclear power industry. Her previous positions at Westinghouse included director of Core Engineering and manager of Materials and Fuel Rod Design. Prior to joining Westinghouse, she was a manager in Materials Technology at Bechtel Bettis, Inc. where she led and conducted R&D in advanced nuclear fuel materials for US Naval Reactors.

Dr. Baranwal was adjunct faculty at University of South Carolina’s nuclear engineering graduate program from 2010-2012. She received her bachelor’s degree from MIT in materials science and engineering and her master’s degree and Ph.D. in the same discipline from the University of Michigan. She also completed an executive management program at Duquesne University’s Beard Institute in 2009.

Baranwal currently serves as Chair of the Executive Committee of the American Nuclear Society’s (ANS) Materials Science and Technology Division (MSTD).  Rita sits on Advisory Boards for MIT’s Materials Research Laboratory and UC Berkeley’s Nuclear Engineering Department.  She also serves on the Board of Directors for North Hills Community Outreach.

David Blee
Moderator
President, U.S. Nuclear Industry Council (United States)

David Blee serves as the president and chief executive officer of the U.S. Nuclear Industry Council, the leading business consortium advocate for nuclear energy and the promotion of the American supply chain globally. The Council represents more than 80 companies comprising the “Who’s Who” of nuclear energy across a broad mix of the U.S. supply chain, including key mover utilities, technology innovators, architect engineers and constructors, manufacturers, suppliers, and services companies.

Blee was appointed in 2016 to a third term on the Civil Nuclear Trade Advisory Committee (CINTAC) by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce. He serves as the chairman of the CINTAC’s Subcommittee on Advocacy.  Blee’s public service also includes appointments as a U.S. principal deputy assistant secretary of energy, director of public affairs for the Department of Energy and as a Congressional chief of staff.

Blee’s private-sector experience encompasses assignments as group executive vice-president for NAC International, where he directed U.S. and international business development as well as the NAC Worldwide Consulting Group. He is a former senior vice-president for Robinson, Lake, Lerer and Montgomery, a Wall Street-headquartered strategic communications firm.

Adi Paterson
CEO, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization  (Australia)

Adi was born and educated in South Africa, attaining both a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and a PhD in Engineering from the University of Cape Town before undertaking a Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) post-doctoral research fellowship at the University of Leeds in England. He was to spend more than 15 years with CSIR, starting out as a researcher in engineering ceramics and culminating in his tenure as the organisation’s Executive Vice-President, Technology and Chief Information Officer. A joint executive role between CSIR and the University of Pretoria followed.

He spent some time working for the South African government’s Department of Science and Technology before taking on the frontier role of General Manager of Business Development and Operations for the Pebble Bed Reactor Company. At the time, the Pebble Bed Reactor project was at the forefront of developing a safer, cleaner nuclear technology that could be adopted in a small-scale and modular fashion, with significant potential for developing countries.

Jon Ball
Executive VP for Nuclear Energy, GE-Hitachi (United States)

Jon Ball is Executive Vice President of Nuclear Plant Projects for GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, a position he assumed in November 2015. In this role he leads the development and execution of new plant strategies globally.

Jon has been a leader in the nuclear industry for more than 20 years and has a wide-range of experience in manufacturing, global operations, services, quality and P&L leadership.

From 2012-2015 Jon served as Senior Vice President, Global Supply Chain, where he led more than 1,000 employees worldwide in manufacturing and logistics. Prior to that Jon spent seven years in services where he led both the performance services and field services segments. 

Before that he spent seven years with Global Nuclear Fuel, a joint venture majority owned by GE, serving in several positions including global supply chain leader, quality manager and lab manager.

Sue Ion
Chairman, UK Nuclear Innovation Research Advisory Board (UK)

Dame Sue Ion is currently Hon President of the National Skills Academy for Nuclear and is a member of the UK Office of Nuclear Regulation Independent Advisory Panel.  She was Chairman of the UK Government’s Nuclear Innovation Research Advisory Board which operated from January 2014- March 2016. She represents the UK on a number of international review and oversight committees for the nuclear sector including the Euratom Science and Technology Committee which she chairs, having been reappointed in April 2014 for a second term. She is the only non US member of the US Department of Energy’s Nuclear Energy Advisory Committee on which she has served since 2005.

Dame Sue has been Chairman of the Canadian National Nuclear Laboratory Scientific Advisory Board since the beginning of 2016. She was the UK’s representative on the IAEA Standing Advisory Group on Nuclear Energy 2000-2007.

Takashi Kiyoura
Director, Atomic Energy Division, MEXT (Japan)

Mr. Takashi attended Kyushu University in Japan, where he received a Masters of Engineering in 1993. Currently Mr. Takashi is Director of the Atomic Energy Division at MEXT. He has spent the past 4 years as a Director at the Ministry. Previously he also worked as a deputy director at the Japan Atomic Energy Agency. Mr. Takashi also spent time as a Secretary to the Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy.

Gina Strati
Director for Energy Programs, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (Canada)

Gina Strati is the Director of the Energy Program at Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL).  She is responsible for research and development activities related to supporting the safe operation of existing nuclear power generating stations, understanding nuclear fuels and fuel cycles, deploying advanced reactors including Small Modular Reactors, developing hydrogen technologies, and addressing federal research needs by developing technologies to meet Canada’s greenhouse gas emission targets.  Gina received her Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from McGill University in Montreal and her Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from the University of New Orleans in Louisiana.

Advancing Nuclear Energy Morning Session–II Speakers

Corey McDaniel is the VP for Business Development at the Canadian Nuclear Laboratories.

Previously he managed international and commercial cooperation for the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Nuclear Science and Technology Directorate. Corey also served as the lead laboratory coordinator for India to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the lead lab advisor to the DOE office of Nuclear Energy International Cooperation.

Prior to INL he served as VP for Asia in Hong Kong, China for a nuclear electrical supplier and in Mumbai, India as the international director of NuScale Power, a small modular reactor (SMR) company.

Corey secured and managed the delivery of replacement safety class (1E) cables to KHNP’s Shin Kori 3 & 4.  He also facilitated 1E cable deliveries to China and the UAE, and opened the Japanese market to U.S.-supplied cables for the first time.  Corey facilitated MOUs with China’s largest nuclear utility and India’s largest nuclear EPC during visits to more than a dozen Asian and European countries.

Dr. McDaniel spent 5 years in the U.S. Senate as a legislative director and energy policy advisor to three Senators from Idaho and Arizona.

Corey began his career as a nuclear safety analyst performing PRA and thermal-hydraulic research at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.

He received his doctorate in environmental science and public policy from George Mason University and his bachelors and masters degrees in nuclear engineering from the University of New Mexico and Purdue University respectively.

David Petti
Author of MIT Future of Nuclear Energy Study, Idaho National Laboratory (US)

Dr. David Petti is a graduate of the MIT Nuclear Engineering Department and has been recognized as a Fellow at both the Idaho National Laboratory and the American Nuclear Society. Dave is the author of over 100 peer-reviewed publications and 50 national and international conference proceedings in the areas of fusion safety, TRISO-coated particle fuel behavior, and fission reactor safety. With over 29 years of experience in nuclear fission and fusion technology, he currently serves as Co-National Technical Director in DOE’s Advanced Reactor Technologies Program, providing input to the direction and research of nuclear reactors in the future. In his director roles at Idaho National Laboratory, he has had direct experience with research and development for fuels, graphite, high-temperature materials, and design and safety evaluation methods. Dr. Petti is an expert in coated particle fuel technology and represents the U.S. in a variety of international forums related to high temperature gas-cooled reactor technology.

He has also served as the Deputy Director and the US lead for Safety and Standards in the DOE Fusion Technology program. In the US Fusion Safety Program he was responsible for and made seminal contributions to safety and risk evaluations of the ITER design, and technical leadership of safety-related R&D for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project.

Gordon Bryan
Deputy Director, U.K. National Laboratory (United Kingdom)

Gordon Bryan is currently the Research and Innovation Director of the Nuclear Innovation and Research Office (NIRO). NIRO operates as a directorate of the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) and is separated from the commercial NNL business by a series of ethical barriers. NIRO is charged with providing independent technical advice to underpin Government policy. For the last 5 years he has worked closely with both the Nuclear Innovation and Research Advisory Board (NIRAB) to formulate and interpret advice on the publicly funded civil nuclear research required to underpin Government policy.  Prior to his current role Gordon spent almost 35 years in the UK nuclear industry carrying out a range of research, technical strategy and commercial roles spanning the whole of the nuclear fuel cycle.

Dai Zhimin
Deputy Director,
SINAP (China)

Dai Zhimin, male, born in 1969, obtained Ph.D. degree at Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics(SINAP), CAS, in 1995. Since then he has been working at SINAP. Currently He is a deputy director of SINAP, also a guest professor of University of CAS and Shanghai-Tech University. He was one of the CAS Distinguished Research Fellows in 2014. He was awarded the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award in 2011.

Areas of Research: Nuclear Science and Technology.

Achievement and Experience: Since 1995, he was in charge of the physical design, construction and commissioning of storage ring of Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility (SSRF), which is one of the biggest scientific platform in China. When the SSRF was completed, it was considered as a world leading facility. The SSRF was awarded a grand prize from the Shanghai Science and Technological Progress in 2012 and a first prize from the National Scientific and Technological Progress in 2013.As the deputy director of the “Strategic Priority Research Program” of CAS – “Thorium Molten Salt Reactor (TMSR) nuclear energy system”, he is responsible for the design of TMSR experiment devices, safety analysis, prototype development, experimental platform construction and so on. He participates in the formulation of TMSR technical aims of science and technology, development strategy, road maps and team creation.

Han Ok Kang
Director of SMART Program, Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute (Korea)

Dr. Kang received his Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Seoul National University with thesis title: A Theoretical Modeling of Heat Transfer and Evaporation in the Vertical Channel Related to PCCS, and Development of Correlation.

After Dr. Kang joined KAERI as Post Doc. In 1996, he has published more 50 technical papers in the area of small modular nuclear reactor design. His research has focused on reactor system design including passive safety system, once-through steam generator, and plant control logic. Currently he works as project management director of SMART Pre-Project Engineering Project for KSA construction.

Ken Langdon
Vice President Of Operations And Plant Services, Nuscale (US)

Ken Langdon, vice president of operations and plant services, is responsible for defining the NuScale Power plant’s operational and maintenance requirements to ensure it can be operated in a safe and efficient manner.

Langdon is an experienced executive whose career began in 1988 in the U.S. Navy (eight years) as a Nuclear Machinist’s Mate. In the nearly three decades since, he has served in a diverse range of leadership roles in U.S. utilities, and also on the power plant supplier side both domestically and internationally.
Langdon joined NuScale from Westinghouse where he held the positions of vice president and deputy project director at V.C. Summer, as well as vice president of operational readiness in Shanghai, China for the first two AP1000 plants in the world.

Prior to working at Westinghouse, Langdon was site vice president at the Nine Mile Point Nuclear Plant for Constellation Energy Nuclear Group; plant manager at the Sequoyah Nuclear Plant for Tennessee Valley Authority; senior director operations, operations service director and outage manager at the Diablo Canyon Power Plant; work management director and nuclear oversight manager at the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station and maintenance services manager at the Dresden Station for Exelon Nuclear.

Langdon holds a bachelor’s degree in workforce education & development from Southern Illinois University and a SRO Certification from LaSalle County Nuclear Station.

Simon Irish
CEO, Terrestrial Energy (US)

Simon Irish is Chief Executive Officer of Terrestrial Energy Inc.  He has 20 years of global investment banking and investment management experience in New York and London. He has a formal education in the quantitative sciences and quantitative finance, and has established and managed multi-billion-dollar alternative investment businesses in North America.

Mr. Irish is the former Head of Man Global Strategies (MGS) in North America, the strategic investment division of Man Group Plc, a leading global investment management business. During his tenure at Man, Mr. Irish was responsible for building and managing the largest and most active strategic investment and managed account business in North America. Mr. Irish was a member of the Investment Committee and responsible for corporate acquisition opportunities in North America for Man Group Plc.

Mr. Irish began his banking career at Credit Suisse in London, and in 2001 moved to New York as Director of FRM, the London based investment firm, to establish its U.S. business.

In 2010, he focused on opportunities in breakthrough energy technologies and in particular nuclear energy given its unparalleled energy density and the commercial potential of advanced reactor technologies.

Mr. Irish holds an MA in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University and an MSc in Finance from the London Business School.

Day 3

Morning Session

Sustaining Nuclear Energy Morning Session—I Speakers

William (Bill) Fox is SNC-Lavalin’s Executive Vice-President, Nuclear. He oversees all operations carried out by the Canadian Nuclear business unit, including the design and delivery of CANDU reactors, life extension projects, plant life management programs and tools, and operation and maintenance services (both BOP and NSP) for existing BWR/PWR and CANDU nuclear power stations across Canada and in key international markets. Bill is a seasoned engineer and executive with nearly 40 years of energy and nuclear power industry experience, including design engineering, procurement, construction, and safety culture leadership experience, with the rare background of working directly with utilities, original equipment suppliers, and architect/engineers. Bill began his career with almost 20 years at Duke Energy, leaving as Vice-President, Major Projects & Technologies. He went on to be Senior Vice President and Project Director at Chicago Bridge & Iron (CB&I) managing a large EPC contract. From there, he was President, Technical Services and Nuclear Energy & CEO Generation mPower for BWX Technologies. In addition to the many leadership roles, Bill has a unique experience of working with a nuclear utility, and OEM and A/E. Bill is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and of the American Nuclear Society (ANS); he is a Registered Professional Engineer in four US states. He is also a past Board Member of the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), Nuclear Fuel Services (a BWXT Company) and several other joint venture companies in the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Office of Environmental Management (EM) and Office of Nuclear Energy. He has completed a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Civil Engineering from the University of South Carolina from 1976 to 1978, previously completing his Associate of Science (AS), PreEngineering again from the University of South Carolina from 1974 to 1976.

Gary Wolski’s nuclear career started over thirty years ago where he served in the U.S. Navy’s nuclear power program on board a ballistic missile submarine. Mr. Wolski then worked in Reactor Operations at the Fast Flux Test Facility and as a Maintenance Engineer at Tank Farms and the Effluent Treatment Facility for Westinghouse Hanford Company at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Reservation. For the last twenty-two years, Mr. Wolski has been with Curtiss-Wright, working in their Nuclear Division in positions of increasing levels of responsibility in Sales, Marketing, Business Development and Management. His current position is Vice President of Market Development where he is responsible for growing Curtiss-Wright’s civil nuclear power business outside of North America.

Mr. Wolski was reappointed to CINTAC, the Civil Nuclear Trade Advisory Committee that advises the Secretary of Commerce on ways to increase civil nuclear exports, and was elected Chairman. He served as Vice Chairman of the previous CINTAC charter, chairman of CINTAC’s Supplier Capacity and Competitiveness subcommittee on his first charter, chairman of NEI’s Trade Issues Subcommittee, chairman of Curtiss-Wright’s Employee Political Action Committee, and is a member of NEI’s Supplier Advisory Committee.

Sherry L. Bernhoft
Director for Long Term Operations,
Electrical Power Research Institute (US)

Sherry Bernhoft is the Senior Program Manager for Strategic Programs and Long-Term Operations at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). In this position she is responsible for planning and managing a portfolio of research projects that provide the technical basis for flexible nuclear plant operations, and plant life extension. This portfolio of research projects is collaborated with the DOE Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) projects and EPRI’s international partners.

Bernhoft joined EPRI in 2012 as a Program Manager. Prior to joining EPRI, she worked at a number of nuclear power plants in the U.S., most recently the Comanche Peak Nuclear Power Plant where she was Manager, Project Engineering. She was responsible for the design, project controls and installation of several large capital projects.

Prior to working for Luminant, Bernhoft worked for Mitsubishi as the Senior Project Manager for the proposed Comanche Peak units 3 and 4 new build projects and lead an international team responsible for preparation of the reference COLA for the MHI US APWR design plant. She also worked for NMC as Fleet Director of Project, Management, and Progress Energy’s Crystal River Plant as Systems Engineering Manager and Licensing Manager.

Bernhoft holds a chemical engineering degree from Lafayette College, a master’s in business administration from Webster University, an SRO Certification at Crystal River-3, and a STA Certification at the Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant.

Fred Dermarkar
President,
CANDU Owners Group (Canada)

Fred Dermarkar is the President and CEO of the CANDU Owners Group (COG), a not‐for‐profit organization dedicated to helping operators of CANDU and Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors worldwide to achieve excellence through collaboration in research and development, joint projects and information exchange. He has worked in the Canadian nuclear industry since 1981, and, prior to his role at COG, he held a variety of technical and progressively more senior positions at Ontario Power Generation (OPG) in support of Design, Commissioning, Operation and Refurbishment of its CANDU NPPs. He retired from OPG as the Vice President of Engineering Strategy in February 2014 to assume his current role. In October 2013, Fred was named a recipient of the WANO Nuclear Excellence Award. He graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in Mechanical Engineering.

Danrong Song
Director for Research,
Nuclear Power Institute of China (China)

Graduated and obtained Doctoral degree of Engineering in Nuclear Science and Engineering Small and medium size reactor overall design. Isotopic production reactor overall design. Seawater desalination, low temperature nuclear heating plant feasibility study.

Mechanical-electrical equipment for power plant design, Manufacturing surveillance, Components procurement, Installation & testing, In-factory acceptance, Shipping & transportation, On-site acceptance.

Hirokazu Ofuji
Senior Director,
Marubeni Utility Services (Japan)

Hirokazu Ofuji is the Senior Director at Marubeni Utility Services. Mr. Ofuji received his bachelor’s degree in economics at Kindai University.

Ten years experience in nuclear industry.

Three years experience in Plant Process Computer replacement for Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, as a project manager.

Five years experience in Nuclear IT security field, and three years experience in Fire protection for NRA(Nuclear Regulation Authority) regulation.

Bruce Hallbert
U.S. Light Water Sustainability Program Director,
Idaho National Laboratory (US)

Bruce Hallbert is the Director of the Technical Integration Office of the US Department of Energy’s Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program.  He previously served as the national technical director of Advanced Sensors and Instrumentation research for the DOE-sponsored Nuclear Energy Enabling Technologies (NEET) program and In-Pile Sensors Initiative. He is the past President of the International Association of Probabilistic Safety Assessment and Management (IAPSAM) and now serves as its Secretary.  He received his Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Ron Oberth
President,
Organization of Canadian Nuclear Industries (US)

Dr. Ron Oberth has worked in the Canadian nuclear industry for more than 30 years at Ontario Hydro, Ontario Hydro International, Ontario Power Generation and the former AECL Reactor Division (now SNC-Lavalin/ Candu Energy).  In June of 2011 Ron became president and CEO of the Organization of Canadian Nuclear Industries (OCNI) – an industry association that represents 180 private sector companies that supply equipment and services to CANDU and other nuclear power plants in Canada and offshore. His nuclear experience includes reactor safety, used fuel management, medical isotopes, and the marketing of CANDU reactors both domestically and internationally. Ron is a graduate of the University of Manitoba and the Rotman School of Business and received his PhD in aerospace propulsion from Princeton University.

Sustaining Nuclear Energy Morning Session—II Speakers

Chuck Kharrl
Vice President of Site Operations,
Arizona Public Service (US)

Chuck Kharrl is vice president, site operations for Arizona Public Service Company (APS). Based in Phoenix, APS is Arizona’s largest electric company and serves nearly 1.2 million customers across the state.

Kharrl is responsible for the operation of the company’s three nuclear units at Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station – the nation’s largest power producer. Roles reporting to Kharrl include four Assistant Plant Managers, the Directors of Operations, Maintenance, Maintenance Projects, Work Management, Chemistry and Radiation Protection.

Kharrl has developed broad experience in a variety of leadership positions since joining APS in 2007. Before assuming his current role, he was the director of work management, Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station. He led the strategic improvement efforts in refuel outage execution for the three unit nuclear facility. Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station reduced outage duration by 50% (from 60 days to less than 30 days), while improving on safety and quality standards. Kharrl developed multi-discipline vertical and horizontal alignment within the organization and thus achieved operational excellence.

Kharrl is a graduate of Naval Nuclear Power School and earned his Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Arizona.

Yunho Kim
Director General,
Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co (Korea)

Yunho Kim is the Director General at KHNP Central Research Institute having more than 30 years of experience in nuclear industry. He is in charge of new reactor development projects in Korea. He is also currently project manager of APR1400 design certification for US NRC. He has worked the design certification project since 2010 including pre-application review meetings with NRC.

Before the current position, Mr. Kim had broad experience in KHNP. He started his career as core designer and developed optimized operational strategy for power ascending and the efficient ex-core detector calibration method for 10 years based on neutron kinetic background. And following 10 years, he involved in the management of the safety analysis, environmental qualification and refurbishment of Wolsong unit 1 in Korea.

Chris Comfort
Innovation and Technology Manager, Southern Nuclear (United States)

Chris Comfort is the Innovation and Technology Manager for Southern Company’s Nuclear Division – Southern Nuclear. In this role Chris’ organization is leading evaluation of new technology, developing innovative solutions for improvements in nuclear power and building a culture of innovation. Chris is a nuclear engineer that has recently started working with agile development, lean startup, and human centered design thinking to expedite technology reviews and work with cross functions teams at evaluating solutions.

Frank Saunders
President, Ontario Nuclear Innovation Institute (ONII), Vice President, Regulatory Affairs, Bruce Power (Canada)

Frank began his career in the nuclear industry with Ontario Hydro where he held management positions in a number of disciplines including engineering, operations, quality assurance, safety and inspection.  Frank considers his time as a licensed control room shift supervisor and his last four years organizing and carrying out plant safety evaluations as the highlights of his time with Ontario Hydro.  These independent oversight inspections included North American and international plants and a two year assignment with the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO).

After 13 years with Ontario Hydro Nuclear, Frank moved to McMaster University as Manager, McMaster Nuclear Reactor. Subsequently, he took up the position of Director of Nuclear Operations and Facilities where, as senior nuclear operating authority, he oversaw operations at McMaster’s Nuclear Reactor, Accelerator Facility, Nuclear Research Building Laboratories and support facilities.

In 2001, Frank returned to the Bruce site with the launch of Bruce Power as Vice President Safety and Environment. Since 2001, he has held senior positions in a variety of areas including safety, environment, security, emergency response, regulatory relations and oversight. Frank is particularly proud of Bruce Power’s strong reputation in these areas and the opportunity he had to play a role in this.

Prior to his more than 35 years in the nuclear industry, Frank served 12 years in the Canadian Armed Forces as a Land Ordnance Engineer.

Currently, Frank holds the position of President, Ontario Nuclear Innovation Institute (ONII) and Vice President of Regulatory Affairs with Bruce Power.

Norio Atsumi
Director for Nuclear Energy,
Federation of Electric Power Companies
(Japan)

Mr. Astumi received a Master`s Degree of Engineering at Keio University in 1989. Currently he is the Director for Nuclear Energy at the Federation of Electric Power Companies (Japan), after previously being a General Manager. Mr. Astumi also spent time as the Deputy General Manager at Nuclear Fuel Cycle, and was a Plant Manager at Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Station.