Education and Training Series #113: The Wider Role of Nuclear in the Energy System – Engagement and Education Activities to Enable
This webinar is part of a series hosted by the GIF Education and Training Working Group since 2016.
The link to register to this webinar can be found on this page under "about this webinar".
Who should attend?
Policymakers, industry professionals, regulators, researchers, students, the general public.
About the "GIF Education and Training" Webinars
These webinars, organised by the GIF Education and Training Working Group are streamed live monthly. The recordings and slide decks are accessible after the webinar on this website. These webinars cover a very broad range of technical and policy related topics. At the end of 2023 they have been viewed by more than 15000 people (approximately half of the views during the live streams and the other half views being of the archives on the public GIF website). In total, the GIF webinars have reached Generation IV enthusiasts, scientists, and engineers in more than 80 countries.
These webinars are organised and hosted by the GIF Education and Training Working Group (ETWG).
About this Webinar
Seventy years ago, in 1956, Calder Hall in the UK made history as the world’s first commercial‑scale nuclear power station, pioneering not just clean electricity, but also steam for industrial processes and space heating of buildings. It was a bold demonstration of what nuclear energy could be: versatile, efficient, and capable of displacing fossil fuels long before the world spoke of climate targets or net‑zero ambitions. Yet decades later, this broader vision of nuclear cogeneration remains largely unrealised.
Today, our energy system is undergoing a profound transformation. We rely on energy to heat our homes, power industry, and move goods across the world—but in many developed nations, around three‑quarters of that energy still comes from fossil fuels. Electrification will take us part of the way, but heavy industry and long‑distance transport demand solutions beyond electricity alone.
This is where nuclear energy can once again step forward as a catalyst for change. In the decades ahead, nuclear power has the potential to become far more than a source of clean electricity, providing the clean heat, hydrogen, and synthetic fuels needed to decarbonise the hardest‑to‑abate sectors. It can become a cornerstone of a resilient, low‑carbon energy system—just as visionary as Calder Hall was in 1956.
But realising this vision requires more than technology. It demands engagement, understanding, and a renewed sense of possibility. It requires us to re‑imagine what nuclear energy can offer and to bring people with us on that journey. This presentation will explore how nuclear energy can once again become a cornerstone of innovation—unlocking solutions far beyond electricity—and why education, dialogue, and public engagement are essential to turning that potential into reality.
Dr. Patricia Paviet from PNNL, USA, member of GIF ETWG will facilitate this webinar.
Meet the presenter and moderator
Mr
Robert ALFORD
Robert Alford is the Delivery and Engagement Lead for Nuclear Energy Application projects at the United Kingdom’s National Nuclear Laboratory. His career to date spans a wide range of roles across the nuclear sector, including work in waste management, operational support for existing reactors, and, more recently within UK Government. His expertise centres on the role of nuclear energy in enabling decarbonisation beyond electricity generation. His work explores opportunities such as direct heat use, nuclear-enabled hydrogen production, and the synthesis of liquid fuels like sustainable aviation fuel, critical pathways for reducing emissions in hard to abate sectors such as industry and transport. Robert also contributes to several international initiatives. He chairs the Hydrogen Energy Association’s Nuclear Enabled Hydrogen working group and represents the UK Government on committees within the Generation IV International Forum and the Nuclear Energy Agency. His impact on the sector has been widely recognised; in 2022, he became the youngest Fellow of the Nuclear Institute, the professional body for the UK nuclear industry.
Dr
Patricia PAVIET
Dr. Patricia Paviet was the first chair of the GIF Education and Training Working Group (2015-2024). She now focuses on leading the efforts of the successful GIF Education and Training webinars series and has been doing so since the inception of this initiative in September 2016.
She serves on the GIF MSR pSSC representing the United States since 2021. She joined GIF in November 2015, as chair of the Education and Training Task Force. Outside GIF, Dr. Paviet is the National Technical Director of the Molten Salt Reactor Program for the US Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy. She is managing the research supporting molten salt reactor development across six U.S. national laboratories. She is also a Senior Technical Advisor at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, providing guidance on used nuclear fuel recycling. She has an extensive technical background on the nuclear fuel cycle (front and back end).