INMM Communicator

Greetings fellow INMM members. One of my duties as vice president is to write this column to provide members with insight on the activities of the INMM leadership. Our INMM Immediate Past President, John Matter, and I represented the INMM at the IAEA International Conference on Nuclear Security in London during the week of March 14, 2005. INMM has nongovernmental organization observer status at IAEA conferences.

INMM Vice President Nancy Jo Nicholas and Immediate Past President John Matter at the IAEA International Conference on Nuclear Security in London.

This conference, co-hosted by the British government, brought together more than 300 nuclear experts from around the world to address the global issue of nuclear and radiological threats. Former U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn gave the opening keynote address. IAEA Dirrector General ElBaradei, National Nuclear Security Administration Administrator Linton Brooks and U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Commissioner Nils Diaz as well as many other experts made presentations.

On March 8, 2005, the Technical Program Committee for the INMM Annual Meeting met in San Francisco. Charles Pietri worked closely with the institute’s six technical divisions to organize an outstanding technical program that will appeal to nuclear materials management professionals interested in nonproliferation and arms control, international safeguards, materials control and accountability, physical protection, packaging and transportation, as well as nuclear waste management.

The following day, President Cathy Key convened an INMM Executive Committee Meeting. One of the many topics we discussed was plans for the INMM leadership orientation. As an outcome of the recent strategic planning effort to better prepare the Institute for the 21st century, we held a pilot course, the INMM Leadership Orientation Workshop, last summer on the Friday afternoon before the INMM Annual Meeting.

The course was aimed at current technical division and committee chairs, chapter officers and current and incoming members-at-large to better prepare these potential future INMM officers.

The pilot course was well received, and all who attended agreed that they learned many things about the INMM and that the orientation would be valuable training for other leaders. Of course, we learned a few things we’d like to do differently the next time we run the orientation course as well.

We tentatively plan to hold it every other summer starting in 2006. I’ll keep you posted as the schedule develops.

I’m looking forward to seeing you at the Annual Meeting in sunny Phoenix July 10-14!