Meredith Angwin and Howard Shaffer Receive American Nuclear Society Presidential Citations
American Nuclear Society (ANS) President Eric Loewen, PhD, presented ANS members Meredith J. Angwin and Howard C. Shaffer, III with Presidential Citations in recognition of their successful public information efforts in Vermont and elsewhere. Angwin and Shaffer received their award during the ANS President's Special Session at the ANS Annual Conference: "Nuclear Science and Technology: Managing the Global Impact of Economic and Natural Events," being held June 24-28 in Chicago, Illinois.
"Meredith Angwin and Howard Shaffer have inspired nuclear proponents across the country by shaping the public debate over nuclear energy using facts and technical credibility," said Loewen. "Their success in making sure that accurate information is shared in public venues will continue to benefit the nation moving forward."
The Presidential Citations recognize the following achievements:
Angwin
Meredith Angwin-For providing rational, reliable, and unbiased information about nuclear energy to the citizens of Vermont during the contentious re-licensing period for Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant. By establishing the Energy Education Project, Meredith nourished a grassroots organization that changed the public debate about nuclear energy, lending a credible voice and a helping hand to ANS members and other nuclear advocates well beyond the borders of Vermont.
Shaffer
Howard Shaffer-For tireless efforts to provide accurate and credible nuclear energy information to the citizens of Vermont during the contentious re-licensing period for Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant. Howard's dedication to furthering public understanding and dispelling fear and uncertainty with facts, through a variety of forums, correctly focused the public debate about nuclear energy. He has inspired ANS members and other nuclear advocates across the country.
Angwin is founder of the Energy Education Project of the Ethan Allen Institute. The Energy Education Project is a non-profit with the mission of helping people in Vermont understand their energy options in terms of cost, reliability, environmental impact and government support. She was a Project Manager at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) with a yearly budget of a million to a million and a half dollars to fund research in geothermal and nuclear power generation. Angwin holds a BS in chemistry, with special honors in chemistry, from University of Chicago and an MS in physical chemistry from University of Chicago. She founded Fourth Floor Databases in Palo Alto CA to continue making progress on issues in electricity generation, and she owns Carnot Communications, which specializes in effectively communicating technical issues. She blogs at Yes Vermont Yankee and is a regular contributor to the ANS Nuclear Cafe.
Shaffer has been an ANS member for 35 years. He has contributed to the American Society for Mechanical Engineers and ANS Standards committees, ANS committees, national meeting staffs, and his local section and served as the 2001 ANS Congressional Fellow. He is a current member of the ANS Public Information Committee and consults in nuclear public outreach. He is coordinator for the ANS Vermont Public Information Pilot Project. Shaffer holds a BSEE from Duke University and an MSNE from MIT. He is a regular contributor to the ANS Nuclear Cafe.
For more information about the conference, visit www.ans.org. For information about ANS Honors and Awards, visit https://www.ans.org/honors/.
