Some 800 participants from government, industry, science and research, and civil society will meet in Vienna, Austria, for the IAEA’s Symposium on International Safeguards: Reflecting on the Past and Anticipating the Future from 31 October to 4 November. The Symposium is open to journalists, who can attend in person or virtually.
On the opening day, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi will discuss the challenges and opportunities for safeguards with award-winning journalist Barbara Serra. Following this discussion, Richard Rhodes, a Pulitzer-prize-winning author, will deliver a keynote speech on the history of nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. In the afternoon, Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director at the World Economic Forum and Head of the Forum’s Centre for the New Economy and Society, will deliver a keynote speech on global trends shaping our future.
The IAEA applies a set of technical measures called safeguards to verify that nuclear material is not diverted from peaceful uses. For six decades, these checks have been an essential part of international efforts to deter the spread of nuclear weapons.
The Symposium is the international safeguards community’s flagship event that takes place every four years to showcase research, share ideas and build partnerships. The 2022 Symposium provides a platform to learn from past experiences and prepare international safeguards for continued success in the decades ahead.
Presentations and panel discussions throughout the week will reflect on the evolution of nuclear safeguards. Participants will also explore current trends and developments that are likely to impact the operating environment in which the IAEA will be conducting its verification mission in the future. Special events will feature the perspectives of young professionals and experts in the field.
As part of the Symposium, the IAEA will release the 2022 edition of the IAEA Safeguards Glossary, a publication that describes the essential terms of nuclear safeguards. The Glossary has proved to be a valuable resource for generations of researchers, not only among the expert community but also in academia and journalism.
Press Opportunities
Journalists are invited to attend the one-week-long Symposium starting at 10:30 CET on 31 October, both in person or virtually.
The sessions will take place in meeting rooms BR-B/M1, M2, M4 and Board room A.
The IAEA will publicly live stream sessions from the two main rooms (BR-B/M1 and Board room A) on its website.
Journalists, who would also like to virtually attend sessions taking place in M2 and M4 can register as observers on the website and then access the live streaming of sessions in the “IAEA Conferences and Meetings” App available in the App Store and on Google Play.
For details on the Symposium schedule, including live streamed events, please refer to the Symposium programme.
The IAEA will make photos available on the IAEA Flickr page.
Accreditation
The IAEA requests all journalists to inform the IAEA Press Office of their plans to attend in person or online.
Journalists with permanent credentials to the VIC require no additional credentials. We encourage journalists who do not yet have permanent accreditation to request it at UNIS Vienna. Journalists who wish to attend the Symposium in person should contact the IAEA Press Office for accreditation by Friday, 28 October, 12:00 CEST. Please email press@iaea.org.