Speaker: Arturo Dominguez, from the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory

Title: Bringing people to fusion and taking fusion to the people: Public engagement and workforce development efforts at PPPL

Abstract: With the recent milestones reached in fusion energy research, including repeated ignition shots at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) and a record 69MJ of fusion energy produced at the Joint European Torus (JET), as well the increased private-sector funding to the field, it is clear that the fusion energy landscape is evolving quickly.   This has resulted in more aggressive public and private sector timelines for the commercialization of fusion energy.  This growing ecosystem requires a growing workforce in many areas and with diverse technical expertise.  Relatedly, engaging with the public is important, not only for attracting talent to the field, but also to garner trust and support for this massive effort and, critically, to understand and engage with their concerns about the deployment of this potentially revolutionary source of energy.   In this presentation, I will discuss the efforts led by PPPL, primarily out of the Science Education Department, in public engagement with various audiences and in helping develop the workforce in plasma physics and in the fusion energy ecosystem.   

Bio: Arturo Dominguez leads the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory’s Science Education Department. His department focuses on public engagement, workforce development, and equity, diversity, and inclusion in the fields of plasma physics and fusion energy sciences. He joined the Laboratory in 2012 after graduating from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a doctoral degree in experimental plasma physics. Dominguez has chaired the American Physical Society's Division of Plasma Physics' (APS-DPP) Education and Outreach committee since 2017, co-leads the US Fusion Outreach Team, is a current member of the APS-DPP executive committee, and is a former member of the APS Committee for Informing the Public. He also leads the Pathways to Fusion RENEW center.  Dominguez was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia, and began his college education at the National University of Colombia before moving to the United States to continue his college education at the University of Texas at Austin where he received a bachelor’s degree in physics with honors.

Host: Prof. Carlos Paz-Soldan

This talk will be offered in a hybrid format. If you wish to participate remotely, please send an email to [email protected].