Country Report for France

board

general information

activities

plans

General information about the national YG network

GOALS

The Young Generation group of the SFEN (French Society of Nuclear Energy) was created in 1995 to develop a link between students and seniors. It gathers all the members younger than 35 years old, in activity in a private company or a research centre in the nuclear field. It currently counts 174 members working in France or abroad. 3 teams are particularly active: Paris, Lyon and Valduc, another one is setting up in the surroundings of Marseille.

The goals of the Young Generation group are:

• to build a network of fellows and knowledge,

• the communication and information of the young public and the elected members about nuclear energy,

• a better insertion of young members in the French nuclear companies,

• the promotion of exchanges between young members coming from different places,

• and a global thought about energy in the current and future society, and place and use of nuclear energy in the global energetic matter.

ORGANISATION

The actions of the group are coordinated by a board including representatives of the three active teams. Due to the spatial dispersal of its members, one of the major actions of the board consists in federating the teams and individuals scattered in the country and even abroad. The group both participates in the general activities of the SFEN and organises its own activities in France and abroad.

Group contacts are performed through monthly meetings in visio- and phone-conference, and a large use of e-mail to exchange information. These meetings allow to know what is organised by other teams, to benefit from the knowledge and experience of the others, and to motivate the teams.

ACTIONS

The Young Generation group uses communication tools and organises presentations of its activities to promote the association and the group to people already involved in the nuclear field. The group must also convince sponsors and the SFEN board to support financially its actions, thus the group presents its actions in the frame of the annual congress of the SFEN.

• A stall has been made to present the Young Generation group to novices of the nuclear field.

• A leaflet describes the group’s activities. It is updated every year and distributed during exhibitions, talks, meetings, etc.

Several actions of communication with the public are undertaken: lessons about energy and radioactivity in the primary and secondary schools, participation in career meetings, participation in meetings organised by universities to talk about energies, dialog with the young members of the policy parties and the local elected representatives, presentation of job opportunities in nuclear field for engineering students.

The participation of young members to international conferences and the co-organisation of these conferences is also encouraged: student program of ICONE, International Youth Nuclear Conference, student conference of the American Nuclear Society, European Nuclear Conference.

Technical visits are organised in France or abroad: visits of nuclear plants or research centres (China, September 2004), summer school at St-Petersburg in Russia, travel to Sweden to meet young groups and population.