and CEOs from GasTerra and Royal Dutch Shell, as well as IGU President Datuk Abdul Rahim Hashim. The students’ ideas — and their enthusiasm for them — were impressive. Because the four teams had just three min- utes to present their case (and catch the attention of possible future employers watching in the crowd), each found a way to stand out. Team One asked the crowd to get up and bellow their “team yell” with them, while Team Four, from the Neth- erlands, wore Dutch clogs as a nod to their home country. Every team got a stirring ovation, but it was Team Four’s idea for boosting biogas development in energy-deficient areas of the world through an “Adopt-a-Cow” crowdfunding program that won the competition — and four around-the-world air- line tickets for each team member.
CLOSER CONNECTIONS Ask attendees why they’re spending their hard-earned time and money at a conference, and most likely you’ll hear “the speakers” as one of the top answers. WGC2012 was no excep- tion. Rex W. Tillerson, chairman and CEO of ExxonMobil Corporation; Peter Voser, CEO of Royal Dutch Shell; and Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak were just a few of the speakers leading the con- ference’s keynotes, luncheon addresses, technical sessions, and strategic panels. But WGC2012 also found a new, more innovative way to capitalize on its wealth of experts and educational content. IGU created the Interactive Expert Showcase (IES) as a way for attendees to get up close with 123 specially selected post- ers — presentations on the latest research and studies — and their authors. Conveniently tucked away in a quiet corner of Exhibition Hall 6, the IES featured an informal setup conducive to casual conversation and browsing, not unlike an oversized science-fair exhibit. Attendees could explore the presentations through giant interactive touchscreen displays or sit in on quick, 10-minute chats with the authors. Presen- tations were also kept up throughout the day, allowing for attendees to come by at their convenience. “The interaction allowed me to meet other experts that will be helpful to my future work,” said Jim Drago, P.E., senior manager of market intelligence for GPT (formerly PSI/ Pikotek), who presented two posters in the IES. “Allowing experts 10 minutes to present was a first for me. All other poster events I have been involved with don’t allow that. The fact that there was an opportunity to speak helped to justify the trip.”
KEEPING UP WITH KL For the first time in its 25-year history, WGC met in South- east Asia; and this was just the second time that the confer- ence was held in Asia. With some of the world’s most popular meeting destinations nearby — Singapore, the fifth most