On March 2, 2023, an agreement was signed that enshrines the status of the NRNU MEPhI as a collaborating center of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The agreement was signed by the Rector of MEPhI Vladimir Shevchenko and the Deputy Director General, Head of the Department of Nuclear Energy of the IAEA Mikhail Chudakov.
The signing ceremony was attended by leading employees of the Department of Nuclear Energy and the Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications of the IAEA, senior officials of the MEPhI Research Institute and representatives of the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to International Organizations in Vienna.
The IAEA’s system of collaborating centers, focused on research, development, and training, helps in achieving important indicators of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. NRNU MEPhI, as the IAEA Collaborating Center, will assist the IAEA in implementing activities under the IAEA Program “Nuclear Power, Fuel Cycle and Nuclear Science” in the following main areas – nuclear education, nuclear knowledge and information management, long-term strategies in the field of nuclear energy, infrastructure for nuclear energy, and others.
Mikhail Chudakov:
“MEPhI has been preserving and improving nuclear education for decades. It has produced famous scientists and even Nobel Prize winners. And it continues to foster new generations of nuclear specialists.
The IAEA and the Department of Nuclear Energy, which I lead, have cooperated with MEPhI on many joint projects. They include education, training, and human resources development across a spectrum of topics: advanced reactors, INPRO schools, fuel cycle, nuclear knowledge management—to mention just a few.
MEPhI is one of the main founders of the Regional Network for Education and Training in Nuclear Technology, also known as STAR-NET. The IAEA facilitated the establishment of STAR-NET to promote, manage and preserve nuclear knowledge. The goal is to ensure the continued availability of talented and qualified human resources in the nuclear field. Currently, STAR-NET unites 14 universities from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Poland, Russia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.
MEPhI is also one of the major universities that offers an IAEA-endorsed master’s programme on nuclear technology management.
We already have in place Practical Arrangements, signed in 2012 and extended in 2015 and in 2021.
And today, MEPhI is joining the family of IAEA Collaborating Centres, to promote the practical use of nuclear energy and help the IAEA implement its own programmatic activities.
This designation will enable further joint activities and cooperation, and will help enhance IAEA support to Member States, in nuclear energy management, nuclear knowledge management, human resource development and capacity building. This is particularly important for countries considering introducing or expanding nuclear power or nuclear technology applications.”
Vladimir Shevchenko:
“As one of the leading research universities in Russia, NRNU MEPhI has an excellent reputation for its scientific schools and is equipped to expand its collaboration with the IAEA. We train graduate students, masters, bachelors, and specialists in the most relevant areas of fundamental and applied science and modern technologies, and we pride ourselves on the continuity of our educational, scientific, and innovative activities.
We look forward to working with the IAEA in many important areas, including the provision of expert services in the implementation of the main IAEA programs and technical cooperation programs, the fulfillment of the Russian Federation’s obligations in maintaining and developing the INIS information system, the execution of specific projects on a contractual basis, and the internships of students and young employees at the IAEA. We are also committed to strengthening our contribution to the implementation of IAEA nuclear education programs, including the IAEA International Nuclear Management Academy (INMA), the School of Nuclear Knowledge Management and the School of Nuclear Energy Management, International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO).”
The Parties agreed to implement the activities provided for in the work plan for 2023-2027 and to conduct an interim assessment of cooperation under this agreement in order to improve the quality of the work carried out and update their focus to achieve the goals set.
