The FNCA 2007 Project Leaders (PL) Meeting for Public Information on Nuclear Energy was held over five days from November 26 (Mon) to 30 (Fri), 2007 at Seri Pacific Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, hosted by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) of Malaysia, the Malaysian Nuclear Agency (Nuclear Malaysia), and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan.
A total of 21 participants included officials from eight countries, Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, The Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and IAEA, and the FNCA Coordinator of Japan.

Participants of the FNCA 2007 Project Leaders Meeting

In the opening session on the first day of the meeting (November 26), Mr. Adnan Khalid, Coordinator of Malaysia and Senior Director (Management) of Nuclear Malaysia, gave a welcome speech, and said that Malaysia needs to secure energy, and that he thinks public acceptance is important for advancing the application of nuclear energy. And Dr. Machi, FNCA Coordinator of Japan (Advisor to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology), gave a speech and emphasized that accurate information about nuclear energy is necessary for promoting the public acceptance of nuclear energy.

Venue of the PLM for public information on nuclear energy Seri Pacific Hotel (Kuala Lumpur)

In Session 1, project leaders presented country reports of each country, introducing activities related to public information (exhibition, seminar, lecture, event, meeting etc.), and the latest information etc. in FNCA countries. Dr. Machi introduced the results of the Seventh Ministerial Level Meeting in Kuantan, Malaysia, on November 2006 and others, and Mr. Minoru Kubo, the project leader for public information from Japan, reported the public information activities of FNCA.

Venue of the PLM for public information on nuclear energy Seri Pacific Hotel (Kuala Lumpur)

Meanwhile, the interview with Dr. Machi was broadcast live on the television program Hello on Two at 8:15 a.m. on November 26 in Malaysia. He spoke about the significant contribution of nuclear energy to energy security and the fight against climate change.

As part of the program for this as well as the last PLM, training for nuclear communicators was arranged by the IAEA, and project leaders from each country attended for the purpose of reference to future public information activities. In Session 2, the IAEA program was explained. And in session 3, a training program on the challenges for nuclear communicators drawn from the experience of the IAEA was carried out.

In Session 4, the Three Year Plan (FY2005 to FY2007) of the FNCA project for public information on nuclear energy was reviewed and discussed. A number of opinions were given in the discussion, for instance, FNCA's website should be improved, its use should be encouraged and it should be provide new information, such as introducing the facilities for public information on nuclear energy (exhibition pavilions and visitor centers) in Asia, and expectations for the Regional Speakers Bureau (RSB) are high. Moreover, there was a proposal in the discussion that it is desirable to conduct a public opinion poll in countries where the introduction of nuclear power generation is being considered and to share the results of the poll with other FNCA countries in the project for public information on nuclear energy. As for the ANTEP, a program for human resource development, it was said that all FNCA countries should notify the specific areas of training and the names of trainees. It was agreed that the next PLM would be hosted by the China Atomic Energy Agency (CAEA).

A scene of a training for public information by IAEA Participants were seeking to improve their communication skills by checking their presentation recorded with a video camera.

First in Session 5, Dr. Daud Mohamad, Director General of Nuclear Malaysia, delivered a speech, stating, "We welcome project leaders for public information on nuclear energy from each country. You are on an important mission to tell the public about nuclear technology." After this, participants reviewed DVDs/videos and posters/pamphlets.
In this session, DVDs, posters, and pamphlets, brought by project leaders from each country, were screened or circulated, and participants made comments and proposals on them. It was the first time for participants to review real publicity materials of other countries, and this program was well received. They assessed it as very useful for future public information activities to have been able to advance the sharing of information and knowledge about public information activities through the exchange of valuable opinions, and hoped that it would be continued.

A scene of a forum opened to the public (on November 29)) Dr. Machi, FNCA Coordinator, the PLs of China, Korea, and Japan, and the delegate of the IAEA gave lectures to the public in Malaysia.

DVDs for publicity that PLs of each country brought were screened. Participants exchanged their opinions while watching publicity DVDs that PLs brought from each country. As they had had little opportunity to watch the publicity videos of other countries, this activity was well received and it is hoped it will be continued.

On November 29, an open forum on nuclear energy was held at the Putra World Trade Center in Kuala Lumpur, attended by about 100 people, including government officials, delegates from private corporations, academic societies, NGOs, and the media. Hosted by Dr. N. Khair, Deputy Director of Nuclear Malaysia, as Chairman of the forum, Dr. Machi, FNCA Coordinator of Japan, gave a speech titled "Energy Demand and Supply in Asia Present Situation and Outlook: Roles of Nuclear Energy;" a delegate of the IAEA gave a speech on the activities of the IAEA; and delegates of Japan, Korea, and China gave speeches focused on the present situation and the outlook for public acceptance in each country.

A technical tour of the facilities of Nuclear Malaysia was conducted in the afternoon of November 29, and participants visited irradiation facilities, including SINAGAMA, and polymer facilities in Malaysia.

Technical tour of the facilities of Nuclear Malaysia Participants visited a site of radiation processing of natural polymer using electron accelerator, among others. The facilities develop sago hydrogel for wound dressing and biofilm for packaging.

The FNCA 2007 Project Leaders Meeting (PLM) on Public Information (PI) of Nuclear Energy was held from November 26 - 30, 2007 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The PLM was held in conjunction with the National Innovation Conference and Exhibition (NICE) 2007.

This PLM was hosted by the Malaysian Nuclear Agency (Nuclear Malaysia), the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) of Malaysia, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan, in cooperation with the Nuclear Safety Research Association (NSRA) of Japan and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Session 1: Opening Session (Chairman - Mr. M. Rosli Muda)
On November 26, 2007, during the Opening Session held at the Seri Pacific Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Mr. Adnan Khalid, FNCA National Coordinator for Malaysia and the Senior Director (Management) of Nuclear Malaysia, delivered a welcome address. In his address, he mentioned that Malaysians are very much aware of the need for energy and to promote nuclear energy to gain public acceptance of the technology. Dr Sueo Machi, FNCA National Coordinator of Japan and an Advisor to the MEXT, officially opened the PLM. In his message, Dr. Machi stressed that correct information about nuclear energy (i.e. nuclear safety, radioactive waste management, energy supply, and energy security) should be given to the public to enhance public acceptance of nuclear energy.

Session 2: Country and IAEA Reports (Chairman- Mr. M. Rosli Muda; Co-Chair- Mr. Minoru Kubo)
Following the Opening Session, a presentation of the country reports was made by the FNCA PI PLs from Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, The Philippines, Thailand, Viet Nam and a representative from Korea. The topics covered in the country reports consisted of the public information activities in FNCA member countries (exhibition, seminar, lecture, meeting, special event etc); and updates on nuclear-related topics, among others. A presentation was also made by Dr. Sueo Machi about the FNCA projects, its achievements and current activities and about the 7^th Ministerial Meeting in November 2006 at Kuantan, Malaysia. This was followed by the reports of two representatives from the IAEA, Ms. Elizabeth Dobie-Sarsam and Mr. Masayuki Kaneko, on the role of the Public Information Division of the IAEA. A video of the 50^th anniversary of IAEA was shown to the participants. After the video presentation, Mr. Minoru Kubo ( the PI PL of Japan) provided a brief report on the FNCA activities on public information of nuclear energy.

There were 15 participants representing nine countries who attended the five-day PI PL Meeting. The participants included the PI PLs and other public information staff/personnel from FNCA member countries. A list of overseas participants and the final program of the PI PL meeting are attached to the present minutes as Attachment 1 and Attachment 2.

On the same day (November 26), at 8:15 am, Dr. Machi had a live interview with Television Malaysia on the program "Hello on 2". The topic was about the important contribution of nuclear power in terms of energy security and global climate change.

A dinner reception at the Saloma Bistro, Kuala Lumpur on the evening of November 26 was hosted by Nuclear Malaysia.

Session 3: Nuclear Communicators Training
On November 27 - 28, a Public Information Workshop on Issues and Challenges for Nuclear Communicators, which was jointly organized by the IAEA and MEXT, was held at the Seri Pacific Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. A total of 28 participants (composed of PI PLs, meeting participants and local participants) attended the workshop. However, the PI PLs only had the opportunity to attend the first day's session and participate in the practical exercise on effective presentations for public information. The names of the lecturers and participants are listed in Attachment 3.

Session 4: Review of the FNCA PI Project (Chairman- Ms. Rhodora Leonin; Co-chair-Ms. G.X. Ping)
On November 28, Mr. Hideharu Sato, FNCA Secretariat, presented the Three-Year Work Plan (FY 2005 to 2007) on the FNCA Public Information of Nuclear Energy. These activities are the following:

In the afternoon of November 28, before Session 5 was conducted, Datuk Dr. Daud Mohamad, Director-General, Nuclear Malaysia welcomed the PI PL participants who, according to him, have an important mission in promoting nuclear technology to the public. He added that PI strategies should be shared, especially on nuclear energy, to help in convincing the Malaysian government in its decision to go nuclear.

Session 5: Review of DVD/Video and Poster/Pamphlet or Printed Materials of FNCA Member Countries (Chairperson: Mr. M. Kubo; Co-chair- Ms. Ketvarong Nukulkij)

The first trial of the evaluation and sharing of DVD and printed materials of the FNCA member-countries was undertaken. Each PI PL provided comments/suggestions on the DVD and printed materials presented. Since each country's DVD and printed material has unique characteristics and qualities, the ranking which was proposed at the PI PL meeting in 2006 in Jakarta, Indonesia was not pursued. However, it was a valuable information exchange among member-countries and sharing of these materials was recommended to be continued. In this regard, Malaysia has graciously provided each PI PL with a copy of the book entitled "Nuclear Science and Technology", and a DVD copy of Dr. Machi's Live TV interview with Television Malaysia on the program "Hello on 2".

On November 28, all the PI PLs were invited to the Innovation Gala Dinner hosted by The Honorable Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Malaysia. Dr. Machi was invited by the Minister as a special guest (VVIP).

On November 29, a Forum on Public Information of Nuclear Energy was held at the Labuan Room, Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur. Dr. Nahrul Khair bin Alang Md. Rashid, Deputy Director General (Research and Technology Development), Nuclear Malaysia and also the President of Malaysian Nuclear Society (MNS), officially opened the forum and served as the Chairman of the forum. The topics and speakers for the seminar were the following:

The forum was attended by 102 participants composed of government officials, representatives from private companies, academe, NGOs, and the media. There was very good interaction between the speakers and the participants during the question and answer session after the presentation of the topics. The comments/questions raised by the participants included the following:

In the afternoon of November 29, the participants of the PI PL meeting had a technical tour of the following facilities of Nuclear Malaysia: Electron Beam Irradiation Centre (Alutron), Polymer Plant and the SINAGAMA for multipurpose irradiation of various products.

In the morning (11:00 am) of November 30, all the PI PL, including Dr. Machi, were invited to the official closing ceremony of NICE '07 by the Right Honorable Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Future Plans:

1. The next PLM on PI of nuclear energy will be hosted by China subject to approval of the Chinese Government at the FNCA Coordinator's Meeting in March 2008. China is the priority country for hosting the PI PL which is to be hosted by the China Atomic Energy Agency.
2. Next year's PI PL meeting should focus on public acceptance of nuclear power. The possible topics for discussion include the following: strategies on how to approach the local community where a nuclear power plant will be constructed, how to approach the media and exchange views with them, and how to convince the public.
3. Public opinion surveys should be conducted in 2008, especially in countries which are considering nuclear power. The results of the public opinion survey of the FNCA countries should be shared during the PL on PI next year.
4. The sharing/exchange of regular publications and information materials through the Nuclear Cooperation Network in Asia should be a continuing activity. Important information can be disseminated to other countries by having the relative information translated into English.
5. It was proposed that a request be made by FNCA for the IAEA to organize an international conference/seminar/symposium on Public Information Strategies on Nuclear Energy. However, it should be checked first if IAEA has plans of convening a conference or symposium on public information before a written request is given to the IAEA Public Information Division. The suggested seminar on PI to be organized by the IAEA could be taken up at the Ministerial Meeting in December 2007.
6. It was suggested that the FNCA request for the IAEA to include in its website (www.iaea.org) the basic facts about nuclear science and technology as well as educational resources for teachers and students. However it should be checked first to see if the IAEA website has no such educational resources before a request is made.

Other issues:

1. Request for invitations of speakers through the Regional Speakers Bureau should be submitted to the FNCA Secretariat at least two months prior to the scheduled event. Experts from countries, other than Japan, could also be invited to public information seminars.
2. Information on experiences in nuclear power of countries like China, Japan and Korea should be shared with other FNCA countries through the FNCA website. The presentations of Dr. Machi on nuclear power could be provided to the FNCA secretariat for inclusion in the FNCA website.
3. A training course on public information should be conducted. The JAEA could propose to MEXT for the conduct of the aforementioned training course for nuclear communicators under the ANTEP Program. For the PI training under ANTEP, a specific proposal on the field of training, with the name of the trainee should be submitted to the FNCA Project Leader on Human Resources Development of the requesting country and endorsed by the FNCA Country Coordinator.

Finally, Dr. Machi, on behalf of the participants of the 2007 FNCA PI PL Meeting, expressed his appreciation to the following for making the meeting possible and successful: The Malaysian Nuclear Agency (Nuclear Malaysia); the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI), Malaysia; the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan; the Nuclear Safety Research Association (NSRA) of Japan; and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).