The NEXT symposium builds on an initial symposium on emerging nuclear technologies and their broader context held in Raitenhaslach, Germany, 2024. NEXT now aims to develop a concrete, technology-agnostic European roadmap for clean and affordable energy. NEXT will discuss demonstrator projects that are scientifically and technically necessary to achieve these goals and establish a stable, integrated energy network, with Germany serving as the main testing ground.
NEXT brings together experts in storage, system simulation, fission, transmutation, fusion technologies, economics and finance, and political road mapping. The symposium is supported by the Dieter Schwarz Foundation.
The symposium will follow the Dahlem format of short keynote addresses, concise statements, in-depth discussions in small groups and plenary sessions, and a collaborative drafting of a preliminary summary at the end of the conference. Participation is by invitation only, and all speakers are asked to submit an abstract in advance. These will then be distributed to all attendees so that they can get a sense of their positions in advance.
Not all invitees will present. At least as important as the presentations will be the contributions to the discussions and the 75-90-minute breakout sessions, the results of which will be presented and discussed in plenary.
Keynote presentations will be followed by several impulse talks. Each keynote-impulse presentation block will be followed by a 30-minute discussion session. We recognize that it is difficult to cover the breadth of certain topics in a 15-minute presentation; what is important are the key messages that can be explored in greater depth during the discussion and breakout sessions.
The outcome of the symposium will be a commented roadmap with suggested demonstrators.