POWER December 2015 - 6

SPEAKING OF POWER
Engaging Youth
in Power
T
he challenge of getting a new generation
of workers interested in the
power sector is one I hear about frequently.
Too many young adults are more
fascinated by the tech sector, plant folks
say. That may be true, but I don't blame
ambitious youth for being attracted to
fields that are pushing frontiers. However,
I do empathize with the traditional
power industry, struggling to attract wellqualified
staff. I keep looking for brilliant
new strategies to share with readers, but I
keep hearing the same old ideas.
Old Tactics Are, Well, Old
When it comes to training for the power
industry, there are both traditional and
nontraditional (especially online) options.
But first, potential employees need to be
interested in exploring them. Parents and
counselors may encourage a career in power
or the related trades by making the argument
that these careers can be financially
rewarding. Another familiar approach that
POWER has covered frequently is recruiting
from the ranks of former military service
men and women. These tactics are important,
but the continued comments about
workforce concerns indicate that they may
no longer be sufficient.
Seeing Is Believing
Even if they ignore the lure of tech company
stock options, Millennials interested in
engineering fields may pass on older forms
of generation in favor of newer technologies.
Aside from the inherent appeal that
renewable energy has for many entering the
workforce, renewables are more accessible
than fossil and nuclear plants. From wind
and solar plants visible from roads across
the country, to solar demonstration projects
at local fairs, to rooftop solar panels, anyone
with the slightest interest in renewable
power can get close to the actual generating
technology. The same isn't true for thermal
plants, even though some fossil plants do
host tours for students. One way around
this problem might be to make conventional
generation accessible virtually.
From Comics to Apps
When nuclear power was new, it generated
a plethora of pop culture expressions,
6
including comic books like the 1948 one
shown here, published by General Electric
and included in Albuquerque's National
Museum of Nuclear Science & History. The
display explains, " This comic book tells the
reader about the potential benefits of nuclear
power. " Two observations about this
bit of history: First, nuclear power became
part of popular culture not just because it
promised that nuclear energy's destructive
force could be redirected to peaceful ends
but also because it was startlingly new.
Second, information about nuclear power
was woven into accessible daily experiences-like
reading a comic book.
I don't have any evidence of this, but
I doubt there were comic books celebrating
coal-fired power generation, even
in 1948. There is, however, a currently
available board game for ages 12 and up
called Power Grid that purports to teach
players about the industry: " The object of
the game is to supply the most cities with
power. " Players acquire fuel and manage
plant upgrades. This is not an endorsement
of the game (which I haven't purchased or
played-hat tip to Associate Editor Sonal
Patel for bringing it to my attention), and
the box's seriously dated image of a guy
in a lab coat at an analog control panel
doesn't exactly send the message that
power generation is cool.
Nevertheless, the idea of gaming holds
promise, even though I haven't been able
to find a 21st century video gaming version
of this concept that includes all fuels
and isn't sponsored by a vendor or lobbying
group. (Startup idea!) Like a Tesla
car, the cloud-based video game could update
wirelessly every time a player starts
a session, adjusting technology options,
fuel costs, and operating constraints. The
closest to a power system video game I've
heard of is ConEd's mobile app " Heroes, "
with a story called " Gassed, " designed to
teach all ages about gas safety. ConEd
promoted its partnership with DC Comics
in developing the app this fall.
Time to Turn a Corner
I visited California's Bodie State Historic
Park (which I do endorse) on vacation this
summer. This massive ghost town offers
a glimpse (literally) into the homes and
www.powermag.com
businesses that were left behind when
gold mining dried up at the site. Today,
the park is enormously popular with visitors
of all ages from around the world.
(See the online version of this column at
powermag.com for photos of the power infrastructure.)
Bodie was a progressive operation
for its time and by 1892 included
a substation for hydropower that was generated
13 miles away. The visitors' guide
erroneously claims that the original poles
and lines " were installed in a straight line
as it was feared the electricity would not
be able to turn corners. " (The real reason,
of course, was that the shortest distance,
and least voltage loss, was along a mostly
straight path.)
What myths about building a workforce
does the power industry still subscribe to?
What corners hasn't it turned? Many of
the most in-demand job titles didn't exist
even five years ago, which means the
competition has changed.
Can you imagine a company developing
a 20- or (more likely) 10-year career
path for job candidates that would start
at a fossil plant but plot a course toward
future positions in renewables or carbon
capture or electric vehicles or robotics?
Yes, such approaches would take generators
out of their comfort zone, but is that
scarier than the future they're already facing?
Share your company's best practices
or promising ideas in the online comments
below this column at powermag.com. ■
-Gail Reitenbach, PhD is POWER's
editor.
POWER | December 2015
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POWER December 2015

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