The UVM Podcast, launched in 2021, is the original, award-winning and CEU-accredited podcast that focuses on preventing contact between trees and lines, on enhancing the reliability and safety of the world’s electric grid. Co-hosted by Steve Cieslewicz, Principal Investigator of the 2003 NE Blackout, and Nick Ferguson, a UVM Technology Leader, The UVM Podcast was this week the recipient of the Utility Arborist Association (UAA) prize for education. The UVM Podcast is sponsored by LiveEO
It is the first time an organization rather than an individual has won the award and reflects the substantial commitment the hosts have made to recording interviews with thought-leaders in the Utility Vegetation Management industry, preserving valuable knowledge for future generations. The podcast is also partnered with the Utility Arborist Association - members holding International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) qualifications can maintain their Continuing Education Credits (CEUs), through multiple choice quizzes on the UAA website.
Speaking about the award, which was revealed at the annual Trees and Utilities Conference, Dennis Fallon, Executive Director of the UAA Commented “The UVM Podcast is a truly original way of enhancing value to our UAA members and the wider utility industry. I’ve been impressed with the depth and breadth of educational content that Steve and Nick have generated, and I’ve heard firsthand how this is enabling the opportunity to learn, both in the office and in the field. The UAA is pleased to be partnered with The UVM Podcast™ to deliver CEUs to our membership base and it brings me great delight to hand Steve and Nick this award.”
Steve Cieslewicz Commented: “I’ve spent my career searching for excellence in the field of Utility Vegetation Management. The UVM Podcast provides our industry with the means to thoroughly document the innovative thought across our industry and, crucially, to preserve and pass on this baton to future generations’.
Nick Ferguson Commented: “I’m humbled to review this award. Through the UVM Podcast I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the thought-leaders in our industry and learned a great deal in the process. It’s been a real pleasure to share these learnings with the wider industry.”
