Thriving in Uncertainty and Harnessing Opportunity was the theme of the 2022 API Summer School, which definitely felt accurate in the two time the school was postponed due to the uncertainty of the pandemic.
However, on April 26th, around 50 delegates arrived to spend the next 10 days learning and interacting with the best in the industry in order to Build the knowledge, insights and connections to enable success in these times of unpreceded uncertainty and opportunity
Over 70 industry experts and leaders contributed to the Summer School program, including our 16 Executive Insights speakers (13 online, 3 live) and 50+ inspiring individuals from across the sector.
Program highlights include:
The school's welcome to country by Mickey Kumatpi O'Brien, Senior Kaurna Man, Kaurna People
Chris Davies, Manager - Future Energy Systems, AEMO
Daniel Anderson, Manager Network Strategy, Powerlink Queensland & Norike Ganhao, Senior Manager Strategy, Monitor Deloitte
Charlie Hargroves, Senior Research Fellow, Sustainability Transitions and Urban Development
The site tours at ElectraNet, SA Power Networks Innovation Centre and AGL's
The panel including - Tom Walker, Acting Executive General Manager, Economic Analysis, Australian Energy Market Commission, Kate Ryan, Executive General Manager - WA and Strategy at AEMO, Lisa Beckmann, Assistant Director at Department of Infrastructure, and Jess Hunt, Senior Advisor, Electricity Market Design, Energy Security Board
SPOT the Robot Dog + Emma Cole, Innovation Manager, SA Power Networks
Syndicate Project Presentations - more on those below
The Syndicate projects are an important part of the Summer School, assisting our delegates in reflecting on the information shared by speakers, prompting them to connect with fellow participants, developing knowledge in new areas and strengthening teamwork and communication skills. We look forward to sharing the outcomes through a report next month.
On the final days of the Summer School, the early career cohort of the POWERful Women Leadership program joined us (the professional cohort were with us for both weeks). This brought the representation in the room to over 50% female - often unheard of in engineering!
'The API Summer School has been a fabulous opportunity to learn from subject matter experts and aspiring leaders from across the industry. The diversity of industry representation, perspectives and breadth of topics/conversation has broadened/deepened my understanding of the transition we are facing as an industry. I leave feeling inspired and excited to take the learnings back to my organization and help shape our path forward.'
'API Summer School has the best balance of meaningful work and social connections, packed into 10 days of intense learning. I've learned more about the theme in 10 days than in the 12 months prior.'
'I found the API Summer School to be an incredible opportunity to meet other professionals in the industry and network with those like-minded individuals. The presenters were very knowledgeable in their field of expertise. I would highly recommend this program to anyone wanting a stepping stone to advance and build on their career and meet people that can help you do that.'