From COVID Crisis to Global Impact: How CIGRE Returned Stronger Than Ever | Michael Heyeck, CIGRE

After COVID cancelled the 2020 Paris Session, CIGRE rebuilt from low cash to more than 5,500 delegates in Paris and committed 600,000 in year one to bring power to communities with none. At CIGRE Paris 2026, Chris Gerber spoke with Michael Heyeck at the APC Media stand. Michael served as Treasurer of CIGRE until the day before this interview and now serves as President of the CIGRE Innovation and Education Fund. The power sector faces supply chain constraints, affordability pressure in many regions and an aging engineering population. This conversation explains how CIGRE is using its One Grid vision, its global networking platform and its new Fund to support innovation, STEM education and humanitarian electrification.

• CIGRE was created 105 years ago to support large interconnected systems, and today applies that integration idea to the One Grid vision across transmission, distribution, generation and the consumer.
• From 3,800 delegates in Paris in 2022 to more than 5,500 four years later, the Paris Session rebuilt CIGRE finances and enabled the CIGRE Innovation and Education Fund.
• The Fund focuses on four areas: innovation and research that seeds scholarships, direct scholarships, STEM education for pre-university students, and humanitarian projects.
• The first 11 projects total 600,000 in year one and nearly 900,000 over three years, with about half humanitarian, including a water pumping station for a village in Ethiopia with no electricity.
• On risk and cost, innovate first, then address risk and cost, while keeping affordability central so electricity remains accessible.
• On talent, engage students early, extend free membership after graduation, offer reduced rates, then bridge to individual membership, supported by university research and scholarships.
• On the future, put problems on the table, bring people together through CIGRE networking and solve for the common good for a sustainable future.