The SPE Port Harcourt Section won the Ambassador Lecture Program (ALP) Outstanding Achievement Award for hosting the most ALPs in the region in 2019.
The ALP is an initiative run by the SPE Young Member Engagement Committee (YMEC) to help educate, inform, and develop the skills of the next generation of oil and gas professionals. Young professionals (YPs) visit universities and secondary schools in their region to help disseminate information about the exploration and production industry, answer students’ questions, and share their professional experiences.
The Port Harcourt Section was motivated to host these lectures by the desire to share the benefits SPE offers its members. Many of the lecturers have been SPE members from their university days, and shared their personal stories of how SPE helped them get where they are today in the lectures. For some, the huge reception they received the first time motivated them to reach out to more schools.
“There was a case where one of the lecturer was asked ‘What the energy industry was doing to tackle pollution and environmental degradation brought about by its activities.’ That singe question motivated her to keep visiting more schools, as it dawned on her that many students had a lot of questions they wanted a professional to answer,” said Section YP Chairperson Ikenna Bede Ikeaka. “Individually there were different reasons, but for us as a section located in the energy center of the nation, we knew we had the human resources as well as the moral burden to reach out to as many schools as possible.”
Having won this award in 2013, the section recognized the importance of the program and considered the award an additional motivation to host more ALPs. The section also hosts a number of other programs such as the Women Development Program, Young Professional Symposium, and Annual Technical Symposium and Exhibition for sharing more technical and professional knowledge.
The Port Harcourt Section would like to thank Ismaila Ibrahim, Israel Kennedy, Moses Alum, Nwonodi Wosu, and all the volunteers who visited various schools as an ambassador lecturer. The section also thanks Section Chairman George Iwo for his strong vision of setting a goal of 150 ALPs for the calendar year.
YMEC would also like to give a special recognition to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Section for holding 65 ALPs, the second highest number of ALPs held by a section in 2019.
The ALP provides a platform to engage and support future generations of oil and gas professionals. To find out more about this program and volunteer as an ambassador lecturer in your region, visit the SPE ALP webpage.