Emmanuel Ohene Opare at Idaho National Laboratory leads the CMI project "Roadmaps for technology development." He earned degrees in mechanical and engineer engineering management from Brigham Young University-Idaho and University of Idaho, respectively. He is currently working on his doctorate in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Idaho while leading two projects at INL. He uses his background and toolkits to guide decision-making for CMI projects. Ohene Opare first started working at the Idaho National Laboratory in 2008 as a Systems Engineer. In this role, he provided engineering services (RAM modeling, Risk Management, Research, and Technology Roadmapping) to several U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Defense projects. One memorable experience was with the Next-Generation Nuclear Plant project where he provided reliability and risk management support to scientists and systems engineers and modeled maturity levels of the one-of-a-kind nuclear power plant.
Ohene Opare's experiences prior to INL include an internship for a U.S. venture capital firm, coupled with social-entrepreneurship/innovation projects in West Africa. His diverse background shapes his worldview and how he approaches problem solving. “'Systems Thinking' helps you see the interconnections and interdependencies between actions and consequences,” he states.
To illustrate the Systems Thinking concept to school children, Ohene Opare designed, built and managed a 3,200 square foot closed-loop aquaponics system. The system raised 6,000 tilapia, and produced vegetables to supplement the cafeteria food of 300 school children for three months in West Africa. Aquaponics integrates concepts in chemistry, physics, microbiology, agronomy, aquaculture, integrated pest management, supply chain and logistics, economics and entrepreneurship. Keeping the system in balance at the micro and macro level is the key to a thriving success!