NextGen goes to the next level
- 27 August 2024
“Seeing is believing,” says New South Wales Minerals Council industry skills and careers policy manager, Sam Skinner. It’s one of the reasons she is excited about this year’s expanded IMARC NextGen program.
Hundreds of primary, secondary and tertiary students will filter through Australia’s biggest annual mining conference and exhibition in Sydney in October. The event, with its wide unique cross-section of industry leaders in attendance, will elevate sustainability, critical minerals, technology and socioeconomic conversations dominating industry and media discourse.
Skinner says more importantly, it will make the themes “real” for attendees.
“We can’t just hope that seeing [NSW] Premier Minns on the television talking about how great it is that NSW has 17 of the 30 critical minerals and what that is going to mean for us in 30 years’ time will inspire kids to want to be part of it and produce a shift in awareness,” she says.
“Year 10 students aren’t watching the news.
“Kids don’t tend to pay attention to stuff that they don’t yet know that they’re interested in.
“And so it’s up to us to put it in front of them.
“Until we do I don’t think we will see a shift. That’s why this event is so critically important.
“You can’t beat seeing, hearing and touching the realities of an industry when you’re talking to young people. And IMARC really covers all of that. They’ll be talking to young professionals. They’ll be talking to senior executives. They’ll be up close and engaging with machinery and technology. They’ll be talking about what the industry is going to look like in five-or-10 years’ time when they’re actually moving into it, and I just think it’s a great thing.
“To get young people who are working on interesting projects at university, who are leading the technological change in the industry, and who are building the projects, and put them in front of students in year 10 who are thinking about what subjects they’re going to study for the HSC and what they’re going to do beyond that, that is real and relatable to them in their immediate experience.
“And that can make a difference.”
Rejuvenation of Australia’s STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) talent pipeline is a nationwide work in progress.
The urgency of engagement, or re-engagement, with tertiary-level geoscience and engineering students and institutions by sections of the resources industry has increased.
Further up in the talent pipeline, and outside it, the success of several grass-roots earth and environmental science, and broader STEM engagement and education initiatives in the past decade has been remarkable.
Evidence of this will be on full display at IMARC, where about 200 year 5 and 6 students will attend under the Australian Resources & Energy Employer Association (AREEA) Bright Future STEM banner.
They will get exposure to CoRE Learning Foundation’s latest Minecraft-based education and teaching games and get to meet trailblazing foundation program founder Suzy Urbaniak. They will walk the exhibition floor, visit the gamification zone, and hear from a wide range of industry experts and other students. “Investing in the future STEM talent pipeline has never been more critical; you can't be what you can’t see or experience,” Urbaniak says.
“The games are a way of immersing Gen Alphas in the earth science curriculum and overcoming traditional teaching-learning barriers.
“They’re also a window into the exciting world of resource industry careers.”
AREEA’s national Bright Future STEM program, delivered to about 10,000 year 5-6 students at circa-160 schools each year, was conceived in 2019.
“We piloted the program in Melbourne in one of the most fossil-fuel-sensitive postcodes in Australia,” says AREEA deputy CEO, Tara Diamond. “We thought, if we can do it in inner city Melbourne, in a postcode with the lowest sentiment towards fossil fuel industries, we’re going to be able to do this anywhere in Australia. And they loved it. The teachers loved it. The school loved it. And so we knew we were onto something.
“When you put [resources] industry people – role models – in front of the kids to talk about the jobs they do, talk about the fact that the industry is moving towards net zero, and they’re in a place that influences the world’s journey to net zero, it can really change perceptions of the industry.
“People think, instead of demonising this industry let’s support it to get better outcomes.
“And STEM is the pathway to be able to do this.
“Now we can't keep up with demand from schools with the resourcing that we have.
“And it’s difficult to get students to sites. Some operations do open days but it's quite an investment.
“To be able to bring the kids to the industry in a different way is fantastic.
“We do the role-model talks, we have people from the industry talking to the kids: IMARC provides that on steroids.
“We have the hands-on STEM activities that really connect what these adults are talking to them about with what they are actually learning in school.
“And then having these kids walk the floor at a conference like IMARC, experience the sophistication and scale of the things that the industry does, and what studying STEM can evolve into, is special.”
Filling in blank spots
Up to 160 year 9 students from seven NSW schools and about 40 year 11 students from four other schools will be part of the NextGen Senior program coordinated with CoRE, Australian Earth Science Education (AusEarthEd) and the NSW Minerals Council.
“This is our first year, which I'm super excited about,” says AusEarthEd CEO Jo Watkins. The not-for-profit organisation’s rich bank of earth science education materials was accessed by more than 17,000 students in NSW, WA and the Northern Territory last year.
“We were aware of the involvement of younger students at IMARC and had really earmarked it as an amazing opportunity for year 11 and 12 students who’ve chosen earth and environmental science [courses]. This is a really good place for them to see applicable career pathways in subject areas they've chosen and are enjoying.
“We thought we would start small – maybe bring a group of 30 students from up to four schools and look to grow it in future years. I thought we were going to have to probably tap some schools on the shoulder and really encourage them to consider it, because I'm not sure that they knew enough about the event and how amazing it is.
“But we had way more applications than we thought.
“Within a day of putting out a notice we had more schools express interest than we could possibly have handled, which is incredible.
“It’s been wonderful to work with a [event organiser] team that understands that student and educator needs are actually different to industry needs, and to be able to work together to put together a program that’s really valuable for all parties.
“It has been a real pleasure.
“We always approach things by looking, first, at the value for the students and teachers. We don’t really want to get involved in an event that isn't a good fit for what they’re doing and their goals.
“IMARC is definitely a wonderful way to engage with the industry. I think what’s different about IMARC is the breadth of industry people and groups involved. It’s incredible for the students to have that breadth of exposure and really start to feel how wide the opportunities are, and that they could be an important part of the industry if that's the pathway they choose to take.
“For us, too, as an organisation to get that exposure into more areas of the resources industry is important.
“It’s really exciting that our courses have continued to grow. You often see a surge of interest in these things and then a dip and they level out. But we've been growing numbers year-on-year in NSW, which is incredible, and obviously fantastic for a talent pipeline on the east coast.”
A former teacher who has been at the NSW Minerals Council for nearly four years, Sam Skinner says even she wasn’t quite prepared for the range of what was on display last year at IMARC. “It certainly opened my eyes when I walked through it. There was stuff there that I’d never thought about.”
Her focus on working with industry and educators to “nurture a future talent pipeline” has broadened, she says, and IMARC has become a key piece of that bigger picture.
“By taking these students and their teachers into an exhibition like IMARC we’re really revealing to them a whole host of career opportunities, right on their doorstep, that they have probably not considered before,” Skinner says.
“We know there is a huge untapped pool of potential in the greater Sydney area.
“We also know there is a bit of a knowledge vacuum. Our research and experience tells us that very clearly.
“People in Penrith don’t know there is a mine at Lithgow. People in Cronulla don’t know there is a mine at Helensburgh. Kids on the Central Coast tend to fall in the gap of people doing careers outreach in Sydney and people doing careers outreach in the Hunter Valley. So they don’t get told anything about the mining industry.
“We’re really working on those blank spots.
“We can preach to the converted a lot in the Hunter Valley, or in the central west or in the Illawarra, but the real value lies in opening the eyes of people who aren’t yet aware of the opportunities that mining has to offer in terms of future careers.
“And the interest in [attending] IMARC has been overwhelming.
“We had to double our capacity this year basically off the back of one cold email. It’s purely down to their interest and their willingness to jump on board.
“I have three schools on a waiting list still that we can’t accommodate. I wish we could accommodate 200 or 300 kids. It might get a bit manic.”
A new vision
More than 100 undergraduates and graduates attending IMARC’s NextGen Leaders program will also seek to connect with sections of the industry and be on hand to provide some guidance to the younger cohorts.
For Anna Kravtsova, a final-year mechatronics engineering and project management student at the University of Sydney, there has probably never been a more interesting, or challenging, time to weigh the potential impact of a career and set of skills.
Can one hope to effect change in an “old-world” industry that hasn’t, by some counts, seen much fundamental change in 100 years?
Kravtsova is, of course, optimistic.
“Everything is in flux, and the industry is too,” she says.
“With an industry that has so many interdependencies with our way of life the extent to which meaningful change can be effected is complex. But if our living, economy, or whatever else is not satisfactory or is unable to be sustained for the future, something must change.
“People have, are, and will always be resistant to change; that's fine. But another truth is that change is inevitable and when needed, happens.
“With increased resources and advancements in intelligent systems, automation and machines shifts in the industry are emerging. Global shifts in sustainability have pushed for enhanced reporting and stricter emission targets. These are clear indicators that the industry is evolving to meet the demands of the future.
“I think these aspects are what excite and interest me the most.”
Kravtsova thinks that while traditional mining might seem disconnected from today’s advanced technologies, “the reality is quite the opposite”.
“Mining and resource extraction are among the most significant industries in Australia and globally, underpinning nearly every aspect of modern life. This scale naturally gives rise to complex challenges that demand innovative and meaningful solutions,” she says.
“As the industry evolves the push for efficiency, sustainability and technological integration places mining at the forefront of these advancements, making it a critical area for impactful change.
“Engineering is inherently a catalyst for change.
“My exposure to robotics and advanced fields, particularly in space, from a young age has shaped my view that these technologies drive significant, meaningful change.
“Recent major innovations in mechatronic systems - complex automation, intelligent systems, AI, etc – have only reinforced my desire to contribute to projects that have a tangible, positive impact on people’s lives.”
Kravtsova says engineering was a natural career choice for her.
“I have always enjoyed complex subjects, reasoning and problem-solving,” she says.
“The diversity and breadth of the industry offer endless opportunities, which I find particularly appealing.
“Mechatronics, or robotics, stood out to me as it combines creativity and technical expertise, providing a unique blend that aligns perfectly with my interests.
“I’ve always admired the way engineers think and operate so studying and working is opportune for collaboration with and learning from brilliant minds.
“We're always in need of elegant solutions.
“The engineering mindset facilitates that.”
With more than 25 years of industry experience and a global presence, Beacon Events is at the forefront of driving meaningful dialogue between the mining and minerals industry and wider stakeholder groups. The group’s commitment to nurturing the workforce of the future is exemplified by the Beacon Events Global NextGen Program, which delivers a vibrant platform for the exchange of innovative ideas, experiences and knowledge.
Shaped to facilitate meetings between contemporary and future leaders, and introduce curious young minds to a sea of current innovations and operating concepts, NextGen has rapidly become a lynchpin in an IMARC program helping to forge a more dynamic and resilient industry landscape.
