Setting the nuclear theme
Twice a year, the ANS president and I work with the general chair of our next national meeting to set the theme of the event.
It’s no easy process. Sure, one can be anodyne, picking anything with “collaborations” or “partnerships” in it—perfectly acceptable but easily forgotten. “Partnerships for Innovation.” Yay! Wait, what?
The true goal is to capture the zeitgeist, the vibe that can frame properly a fulsome conversation around the state of applied nuclear science and technology at this particular moment in time. Yes, our theme is intended largely for the opening plenary, but I’ve often seen speakers use it as a conversational leverage point in the technical and executive sessions that follow.