What's ahead for the IAEA and the global nuclear agenda in 2012? Following is a preview of selected meetings and events on this year’s nuclear calendar:
January 2012
- Thailand will host the 10th International Conference on Nuclear Analytical Methods in Life Sciences.
- In Trieste, Italy, a joint ICTP-IAEA workshop on fusion plasma modelling using atomic and molecular data will run for two weeks.
- Global leaders meet in Davos at the World Economic Forum. Sessions include debates on agriculture and food security and the mitigation of climate change.
February
- Nuclear communication professionals will gather in Warsaw, Poland for the International Conference on Public Information Materials Exchange (PIME) 2012.
- 4 February will mark the global observation of World Cancer Day.
- In Phoenix, Arizona, over 2 000 participants will be attending the annual Waste Management Conference organized by the Waste Management Symposia in cooperation with the IAEA.
- Saudi Arabia will host an International Conference on Radiation in Medicine.
March
- International experts will meet in Vienna to discuss reactor and spent fuel safety in light of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.
- Water and food security will be the over-riding theme for the yearly observance of World Water Day.
- More than 50 heads of states and international organizations are expected at the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit in March 2012. It will be the largest Summit in the security field that discusses international cooperative measures to protect nuclear materials and facilities from terrorist groups.
May
- From 7 to 18 May 2012, professionals from developing countries with an educational background in a discipline related to nuclear security will attend the IAEA-ICTP International School on Nuclear Security taking place in Trieste, Italy.
- The theme of the 13th International Congress of the International Radiation Protection Association (IRPA) is Living with Radiation - Engaging with Society. The Congress will take place from 12 to 18 May 2012 in Glasgow, UK and will focus on the importance of the engagement between radiation protection specialists and local communities and other stakeholders.
- The Fourth Review Meeting of the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management will be held from 14 to 23 May 2012.
- The IAEA, the European Commission Joint Research Centre and the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency will jointly organize the 3rd International Conference on NPP Life Management for Long Term Operations. The Conference will discuss important, recent developments in the field.
June
- The green economy and the institutional framework for sustainable development are the main themes as the Rio +20, the major UN Conference on Sustainable Development gets underway from 20 to 22 June in Brazil.
- Producers, users and assessors of reference materials will meet at the 13th International Symposium on Biological and Environmental Reference Materials (BERM 13) in Vienna, Austria from 25 to 29 June 2011. Reference materials are one of the most important tools in assuring quality and supporting international comparability of measurement results.
July
- Farming practices that reduce carbon emissions and ensure food security will be the focus of an International Conference on Managing Soils for Food Security and Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation taking place from 23 to 26 July 2012 in Vienna, Austria. The meeting will be of interest to food and agriculture scientists, policy makers and donors.
September
- The 2012 Scientific Forum will be held from 18 to 19 September 2012 in the week of the IAEA annual General Conference 2012.
October
- From 8 to 13 October 2012, at the 24th Fusion Energy Conference, fusion physicists from all over the world will meet in San Diego, USA to discuss challenges and accomplishments in the field and assess the worldwide progress achieved in nuclear fusion.
December 2012
- In the last month of 2012, from 3 to 7 December 2012, the International Conference on Radiation Protection in Medicine, Setting the Scene for the Next Decade, will look at the challenges that lie ahead in the next ten years.
For more information, please visit the IAEA's meetings pages. A listing of meetings on nuclear safety and security for 2012 is also available.