Welcome to the June 2011 ANS Conference!

One of the great privileges of belonging to a professional society is the opportunity to transcend the limitations of your own place of work and rise above into the overarching global industry. Joining a professional society gives you the opportunity to interact with fellow professionals at all levels and in all disciplines all around the world, which is precisely what we will be doing in Florida over the coming days. In the aftermath of a globally known event like Fukushima-Daiichi, this coming-together of leading nuclear scientists and engineers takes on an added importance due to the tremendous public need for accurate and credible information about nuclear science and technology.

As a nuclear engineer, I was greatly bothered by how the media barely mentioned the many other horrors experienced by survivors of the quake and the resulting tsunami. The Japanese Police Agency has confirmed more than 15,000 deaths and over 9,000 people missing, mostly from drowning, as the tsunami swept away entire villages. Yet, despite the great human toll wreaked by the tsunami and earthquake, TV, radio and newspaper coverage keyed on Fukushima Daiichi. TV reports espoused the ills of nuclear power with the background showing a massive oil refinery fire. Where was the media blitz-or even a mention-of the pollution from those refinery fires containing products that have no half-lives?

Since the events at Fukushima unfolded, ANS has been very proactive in addressing a tremendous number of public and media inquiries. Many of you have worked tirelessly to provide accurate and informed perspectives on the Fukushima incidents to your communities-and we thank you for your efforts.  ANS' cooperative efforts with other nuclear organizations demonstrate how the nuclear community comes together to share information, lend expertise, and provide a helping hand to our nuclear brothers and sisters in Japan.

The Japan Relief Fund, which was established by ANS in mid-March, embodies that same strong community spirit. Contributions have exceeded $150,000, and the funds have been designated to assist employees and the families of employees at the Fukushima Daiichi, Fukushima Daini, and Onagawa nuclear plants, all located on the damaged east coast of Japan. Contributions, which are tax deductible, are still being accepted at the ANS homepage.

To further the nuclear knowledge base, ANS has established the Special Committee on Fukushima. We are very fortunate to have the leadership of Michael Corradini, chair of the Department of Engineering Physics at the University of Wisconsin, and Dale Klein, former chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, in serving as committee co-chairs. During this June meeting, special sessions will be held on Monday and Tuesday, June 27 and 28, to discuss in detail the events at Fukushima. I urge you to attend these timely sessions.

As our knowledge and understanding of the events at Fukushima continues to grow, we must double our efforts to translate technical concepts into understandable terms and to counter those who would sow the seeds of Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) among concerned audiences. Providing clear, correct, and positive information about nuclear science and technology is the responsibility of each ANS member. While you are here in Hollywood, Fla., I encourage you to

• Attend the Special Sessions on Fukushima and learn about what did and what did not happen. You are the nuclear expert to your friends and families-share what you learn with them.
• Explore the public information and communications sessions at the meeting. Always take advantage of communications training! The tips and techniques you learn are useful in classrooms and boardrooms as well as media stages.
• Go to the Social Media Gathering on Tuesday evening to learn more about how nuclear professionals are using new communications methods to share clear, correct, and positive information about nuclear. Follow up by stopping by the Public Communications Workshop on Wednesday evening, and join the discussion about how to be effective when sharing those messages with Capitol Hill.

As ANS members, we are best positioned to share our informed perspective and communicate the value of nuclear in our communities. I look forward to seeing you in Hollywood and hearing your ideas on how we can move forward together, as a nuclear society.

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Loewen

Eric Loewen, PhD, is chief consulting engineer, Advanced Plants Technology, GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, in Wilmington, NC. Loewen was the ANS 2005 Congressional Fellow, where he worked in the office of Sen. Chuck Hagel (R., Neb.) and coordinated the Senator's inclusion of America's first legislation addressing global climate change policy into the Energy Act of 2005. Loewen is vice president/president elect of the American Nuclear Society and has been an ANS member since 1988. In November 2009, Esquire magazine profiled Loewen as The Man Who Could End Global Warming.