July-August 2019 NPJ

Building a Nation of Nuclear Advocates By J. Bradley Fewell, Exelon Generation. J. Bradley Fewell J. Bradley Fewell oversees the security and regulatory affairs functions, as well as the coordination of issues that involve legal, communication and governmental affairs activities, for Exelon Generation’s nuclear fleet. He also manages legal matters involving all of Exelon’s non- nuclear generation assets. Fewell earned a bachelor’s degree from Wabash College in Indiana, with a double major in English and Psychology. He earned his law degree at Rutgers University Law School. The Nuclear Energy Institute’s Top Innovative Practice Awards highlight the nuclear industry’s most innovative techniques and ideas. This innovation won an NEI Top Innovative Practice Award. The team members who participated Linsey Wisniewski, Senior Manager, Nuclear Communications; David Marcheskie, Senior Site Communications Manager; Alissa Ohl, Public Advocacy Communications Manager; Dorothy Wallheimer, Internal Communications Manager; and Bill Stoermer, Site Champion, Quad Cities, Exelon Generation. Innovation From 2013 to 2016, nuclear em- ployees were an essential component of Exelon Generation’s successful efforts to obtain energy policy solutions in Illinois and New York that preserved five of its nuclear facilities and thousands of direct and indirect jobs. Hundreds of eager and passionate Exelon nuclear employees packed hearing rooms, provided testimo- ny at public meetings, wrote and called legislators, and attended state house ral- lies in Albany and Springfield, creating a visible and powerful wave of support for the policies. In 2017, nuclear and communications leaders began discussing ways to harness that energy by stablishing a formal rogram to engage, rain and deploy its more than 11,000 nuclear employees o serve as nuclear dvocates each and very day as well as n future campaigns. Six months later, n March 2018, Generation Nation was born.Within eight months, more than ,000 Exelon nuclear mployees had joined he organization, and ite-based chapters prung up quickly to train and deploy the new recruits. Generation Nation members signed up to march in parades, speak at community events and participate in school activities to advocate for nuclear energy - from state capitals to grocery store lines and everywhere in between. To date, this voluntary, grassroots organization has reached millions of stakeholders, elected officials and state policymakers through community outreach, tours, traditional media, social media and events. In 2019, Generation Nation will be expanded to more Exelon employees, and is already working hard to build public support for potential nuclear preservation campaigns in Pennsylvania and Illinois. Challenge Focus group research confirms that nuclear employees are considered the most trusted industry advocates, and groups like WIN (Women in Nuclear) and NAYGN (North American Young Generation Nuclear) have been in place for many years to play that role. In addition, Exelon Generation reputation research pointed to employee advocacy as one of the key drivers of the company’s reputation with community members, influencers and employees. It showed employees are expected to be visible advocates for their plants, the benefits of nuclear/renewables, and industry issues. The research shows that it is just as important to Exelon’s reputation for employees to be advocating and engaging with local community leaders as it is to engage directly with policymakers. However, Exelon had never launched a formal program to recruit, train and deploy workers to advocate on behalf of nuclear energy in any coordinated way. Moreover, without strong support from nuclear leaders and department supervisors, many employees were hesitant to speak up. And lastly, while they felt very confident talking about their job or their plant, many employees were uninformed on national nuclear issues and lacked the training and confidence to speak effectively in public or on social media. Innovative Solution Once signed up, members have access to Generation Nation’s library of materials including presentations, talking points and independent reports on a wide array of nuclear topics. They also receive daily news updates and media clips via a dedicated channel on Exelon Generation’s internal mobile application, GenConnect. There, they can read and share news and information with family and friends and post updates to their personal social media channels including Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. To ensure employees could speak comfortably and confidently about the benefits of nuclear, the Generation Nation team organized regional and site-based training sessions to provide members with the skills, tools, and understanding necessary to be effective advocates, e p t t a e i i 5 e t s s 50 NuclearPlantJournal.com Nuclear Plant Journal, July-August 2019