details of the conference with their connections.
The next challenge is ensuring that there is enough space in the venue for the delegates. At SOFE 2023, we had double the number of delegates that we were anticipating and had to hire a marquee to accommodate the catering and exhibition. Finally, no matter how well organised you think you are, there is always a time constraint, and everything starts taking off within the last month.
Can you share a recent event you organized that you felt was particularly successful? What made it stand out?
At the end of February 2024, we celebrated the 40th anniversary of JET and chose to invite everybody who worked on JET over the 40 years, or even before, to join the celebration at the Culham Campus. On site, we do not have a space big enough to accommodate that number of people, so we hired a marquee which was erected in one of the car parks. The marquee was 62 meters long, and given that it was February, it took a lot of heating!
700 people attended the event, the furthest travelling from Australia. Some of our guests hadn't been on site for 30 or 40 years and were delighted to renew old friendships and catch up with one another. It was such a joyous occasion for everyone, including the 100 volunteers currently working at UKAEA, who managed the registration and car parks as well as selling merchandise and helping guests get around the site on one of the several tours that were being conducted. 400 people toured the site revisiting their old haunts, giving them a chance to reminisce.
It was such a lovely day that no-one really wanted it to end.
Have you got any up coming events that you are looking forward to?
It is a little bit in the future, but we have the European Physical Society plasma physics conference taking place in Edinburgh in July 2026. We booked the venue in November 2022, and we’re looking forward to welcoming around 800 delegates.
We’re planning great technical and social programmes for the delegates including a gala dinner at the iconic Museum of Scotland. I’m definitely looking forward to doing the food tasting for that event!
Could you share what your most memorable event in your career was and why?
When I first started working in events in the 90s, I worked for pharmaceutical company. Part of my role was organising the sales reps' incentive trips. One November, I organised an incentive visit to Iceland. It was the first time that this particular group had ever gone anywhere cold, but we had the most fantastic five days. Activities included riding a skidoo, swimming in the Blue Lagoon and a Jeep safari. It was a fantastic experience capped off with a gala dinner that involved a short boat trip to an island with a monastery off the coast of Reykjavik. On the return the Northern Lights put in an appearance for us.
From your overall experience, what would you say was the most valuable lesson or takeaway for you personally?
Proofread and check. I have most definitely learnt over the years that you have to check everything more than once.
UKAEA holds many events throughout the year, are you looking to expand this in the coming years?
We are looking to extend the number of events that we do, both in house and on behalf of associations and would welcome any enquiries if you think your association would be a good fit.
Please check our website for details of what’s going on, or email events@ukaea.uk for information.
Can you introduce yourself and your role within UKAEA?
I’ve been with UKAEA for just over three years now and in that time, I have managed three big conferences, Symposium on Fusion Engineering 2023, Fusion Energy Conference in 2023 on behalf of the IAEA and the International Spherical Torus Workshop (ISTW), which took place in Oxford this October. I’m also responsible for overseeing all event activities and am working at streamlining processes.
What challenges do you face when organising events, and how you overcome them?
With all big conferences it is important to ensure that you attract enough delegates, and that the delegates are a good fit for the conference. Therefore, the first challenge is to ensure that details of the event reach the right people. UKAEA has almost 70,000 LinkedIn followers and we make sure to utilise this, as it is a fantastic platform on which to promote our events. We also ask our colleagues to share
This month we had the pleasure of speaking with Kate Conway, Events Manager at UKAEA, who shared insights into the challenges she faces, takeaways from past events and what to look forward to from UKAEA.
Can you introduce yourself and your role within UKAEA?
I am Danni Chadwick, an Assistant Project Manager within the Fusion Technology Division, based in Rotherham at the Fusion Technology Facility (FTF). I joined UKAEA about a year and a half ago, transitioning from a career in teaching, and now I support several fusion-related projects, both commercial and grant-funded.
What led you to transition from teaching to project management?
After seven years of teaching in secondary and primary schools, I wanted a career change and had always been interested in project management. I started at UKAEA as a Project Coordinator and gradually moved into my current role as Assistant Project Manager. It’s been an exciting journey, and I’m enjoying every bit of it!
Can you share some of the projects you are currently working on?
I’ve been involved in supporting a range of projects, including some funded by Fusion Futures and the Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). These projects involve collaboration with teams across Fusion Technology.
I’ve also supported commercial and grant-funded projects, helping to manage these alongside our research projects. Although some of the specifics can’t be discussed publicly yet, we are pushing forward on several exciting fronts within the Fusion Technology division
Can you share a recent event you organized that you felt was particularly successful? What made it stand out?
At the end of February 2024, we celebrated the 40th anniversary of JET and chose to invite everybody who worked on JET over the 40 years, or even before, to join the celebration at the Culham Campus. On site, we do not have a space big enough to accommodate that number of people, so we hired a marquee which was erected in one of the car parks. The marquee was 62 meters long, and given that it was February, it took a lot of heating!
700 people attended the event, the furthest travelling from Australia. Some of our guests hadn't been on site for 30 or 40 years and were delighted to renew old friendships and catch up with one another. It was such a joyous occasion for everyone, including the 100 volunteers currently working at UKAEA, who managed the registration and car parks as well as selling merchandise and helping guests get around the site on one of the several tours that were being conducted. 400 people toured the site revisiting their old haunts, giving them a chance to reminisce.
It was such a lovely day that no-one really wanted it to end.
Have you got any up coming events that you are looking forward to?
It is a little bit in the future, but we have the European Physical Society plasma physics conference taking place in Edinburgh in July 2026. We booked the venue in November 2022, and we’re looking forward to welcoming around 800 delegates.
We’re planning great technical and social programmes for the delegates including a gala dinner at the iconic Museum of Scotland. I’m definitely looking forward to doing the food tasting for that event!
Could you share what your most memorable event in your career was and why?
When I first started working in events in the 90s, I worked for pharmaceutical company. Part of my role was organising the sales reps' incentive trips. One November, I organised an incentive visit to Iceland. It was the first time that this particular group had ever gone anywhere cold, but we had the most fantastic five days. Activities included riding a skidoo, swimming in the Blue Lagoon and a Jeep safari. It was a fantastic experience capped off with a gala dinner that involved a short boat trip to an island with a monastery off the coast of Reykjavik. On the return the Northern Lights put in an appearance for us.
From your overall experience, what would you say was the most valuable lesson or takeaway for you personally?
Proofread and check. I have most definitely learnt over the years that you have to check everything more than once.
UKAEA holds many events throughout the year, are you looking to expand this in the coming years?
We are looking to extend the number of events that we do, both in house and on behalf of associations and would welcome any enquiries if you think your association would be a good fit.
Please check our website for details of what’s going on, or email events@ukaea.uk for information.
This month we had the pleasure of speaking with Kate Conway, Events Manager at UKAEA, who shared insights into the challenges she faces, takeaways from past events and what to look forward to from UKAEA.