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A Safer, Brighter Future through Collaboration at the 27th International Conference on Structural Mechanics in Reactor Technology (SMiRT 27)
The SMiRT 27 organizers’ choice of the sustainable city of Yokohama as host was symbolic. Left to right: conference chair, Prof. Tsuyoshi Takada, and President of IASMiRT, Mr. Emmanuel Viallet.
The theme of the 27th International Conference on Structural Mechanics in Reactor Technology (SMiRT 27) was Next Generation Structural Mechanics in Reactor Technology, which was based on lessons learned from the 2011 nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Held on March 3–8, 2024, at Japan’s largest comprehensive convention venue, PACIFICO Yokohama, the conference brought together many prominent academia, engineers, and others in this field for a dynamic event that advanced the dialogue on the promising future of nuclear technology.
Sustainable city
Both the conference chair, Prof. Tsuyoshi Takada, and the President of IASMiRT, Mr. Emmanuel Viallet, strongly emphasized the importance of this dialogue for the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goal 7, “ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.” “Through the window of my hotel room in Yokohama, I noticed the wind turbine in the harbour and pondered how, like us, the city is prioritizing green energy,” Mr. Viallet noted. “Nuclear energy drives decarbonization, which is part of the reason we chose PACIFICO Yokohama as our venue.” PACIFICO Yokohama recycles over90 percent of the industrial waste generated at its facilities—one of the highest rates in the world for a conference venue. “Holding our conference here sends a clear message to our participants that we deeply value sustainability” continued Mr. Viallet.
The in-person conference was held in the multipurpose PACIFICO Yokohama Conference Center.
The conference chair, Prof. Tsuyoshi Takada, reflected on the importance of bringing young people to the forefront in the field of nuclear technology.
Looking to future generations
The choice of Yokohama for the conference also reflects a major goal of SMiRT: to promote young people. The city is modern and progressive, just like the field of SMiRT, which is ever evolving with the innovations of its younger generations. “Our aim is to promote a new age of nuclear energy, bringing in young talent and transferring the knowledge we have accumulated thus far. At every SMiRT conference, we host the Shibata Early Career Award to encourage young professionals in the field to share their research papers and contribute to the dialogue,”Prof. Takada explained.
Opportunities for comprehensive hands-on learning
“As industry veterans, we have learned valuable lessons from experiences that we feel a duty to share with this new generation,” explained Mr. Viallet. “SMiRT 27’s technical tours incorporated more dynamism into the learning experience, offering participants exciting opportunities to see up close and better understand what they were learning. The tour of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was booked up almost immediately, and thanks to Yokohama’s convenience as a travel hub close to Tokyo with direct links to other major cities, we were able to arrange several other fascinating tours for our conference participants.” With this and other advantages, Yokohama serves as a gateway to opportunities for experts to convene and share insights, thereby adding to the city’s reputation for promoting global collaboration toward the advancement of nuclear safety and technology.
Participants gain knowledge from technical visits, which they can then apply in their own work. For SMiRT 27, excursions connected international participants with the domestic nuclear power industry, thereby meaningfully advancing the SDGs of clean energy, infrastructure resilience, and climate action. “These tours not only benefit the global community but also highlight Yokohama's proactive stance in addressing urgent global challenges,” Mr. Viallet added. “They are the obvious choice for a host city.”
The conference organizers praised Yokohama for its accessibility and openness to the world. Left to right: chair of SMiRT International Headquarters, Mr. Emmanuel Viallet, and conference chair, Prof. Tsuyoshi Takada.
Conference flags from previous host cities at the venue showed the global legacy Yokohama was now part of.
All-around support from YCVB
SMiRT 27 was not all intensive study and serious discussion. The organizers made time for participants to relax and unwind, taking advantage of the vast array of services offered by YCVB. “We hosted a banquet in Osanbashi as an icebreaker, with music, dancing, and laughter. One key benefit of hosting in-person conferences post-pandemic is the bond that can form between participants, which in turn creates valuable opportunities for collaboration, teamwork, and further academic dialogue,” Prof. Takada said.
Booths offered participants handy guides of the city and excellent English-language support, which undoubtedly contributed to the overwhelmingly positive reviews of the conference and of Yokohama as a scenic, accessible, and clean city brimming with hospitality, culture, and vitality. Prof. Takada said, “The city encompasses everything we wanted to project to the world: intelligent and sustainable architecture, forward-thinking civil engineering, and a drive for positive change. That is exactly what we pledge to do with nuclear technology going forward, and thanks to our host city, our participants left feeling inspired to do exactly that.”