UN agency trains developing nations on nuclear facility management

The United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) today kicked off a programme in Trieste, Italy, to train young professionals from developing countries on all aspects of managing knowledge pertaining to nuclear facilities.

The curriculum for the week-long course has been developed over the past five years, and global experts will lead working sessions, discussions and case studies to inform students on how to retain nuclear knowledge and manage resources.

Typical IAEA workshops for nuclear knowledge management are geared towards participants of equal experience levels so they can share their experiences.

“But this idea of this school is different,” said Andrey Kosilov, one of this week’s course directors and a consultant for the IAEA, which believes that nuclear safety can be promoted by the smooth transfer of knowledge from one generation to the next.

“We are bringing together young professionals who are not yet active in the area and giving them the knowledge and practical guidance on how they can begin nuclear knowledge management programmes in their own organizations.”

The course – organized by the IAEA, the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), the World Nuclear Association and the Central European Initiative – is in its fifth year.