Diversity and Inclusion Workshop

WiN  Western would like to welcome you to Vicki Dingwall’s award-winning presentation and workshop on “How does Diversity and Inclusion contribute to a healthy Nuclear Safety Culture?”.

This presentation explores how diversity and inclusion can contribute to a better performance, greater innovation and most importantly a safer working environment in the nuclear industry.

Intro to Vicki

A champion of Diversity and Inclusion, Vicki joined the nuclear industry in nuclear generation, working at Hinkley Point B before becoming one of the first 30 people employed on the nuclear construction project at Hinkley Point C in 2009 and gaining her diploma in Public Relations in 2016. During the early planning stages of  the first nuclear power station in a generation, Vicki specialised in communicating nuclear planning and consultation information in an easily digestible format and on education, understanding and perceptions of nuclear power. Vicki recently took her advocacy skills to the United Nations 26th Conference of the Parties on Climate Change (COP26) as part of the team responsible for the largest pro-nuclear gathering at a COP to date.

Workshop Summary

 The nuclear industry is a learning industry and one of continuous improvements. Following the accidents at Chernobyl and subsequent nuclear incidents at Three Mile Island and Fukashima Daiichi, response was sweeping. A theme common in these events is that problems crept in over time, often related to or a direct result of the plant culture. Had these problems been recognised, challenged and resolved, the events could have been prevented or their severity mitigated. The series of decisions and actions that resulted in these events can usually be traced to the shared assumptions and beliefs of the organisation.  

WANO and the INPO recognise the importance of the essential traits and attributes of a healthy nuclear safety culture, but how does this fit in with individuality? Teams that are made up of similar people can suffer “groupthink” and are less effective at scrutiny, challenge and innovation, while teams that encourage and respect individuality and diversity not only encourage these important behaviours, but make their teams feel more valued and able to make greater contribution to the business. 

This workshop is open to anyone, to register please contact isabella.bentley@atkinsglobal.com