能源部宣布1600万美元PROSPECT规划奖：16所大学入选培养下一代采矿与关键矿产人才
华盛顿——美国能源部（DOE）下属的关键矿产与能源创新办公室（CMEI）10月26日宣布，16所大学入选 PROSPECT 规划奖（PROSPECT Planning Prize），每校获得100万美元、合计1600万美元，用于培养在美国本土生产、加工、回收和再利用关键矿产所需的技能人才，并创造高薪就业岗位。能源部表示，重建美国关键矿产与采矿人才队伍是特朗普政府的一项重点工作。
能源部助理部长 Audrey Robertson 表示：「美国拥有丰富的自然资源，但我们需要有技能的人才把这些资源转化为推动经济增长、创造新就业的动力。几十年来，我们任由采矿与关键矿产人才队伍萎缩、本土关键矿产供应链弱化。PROSPECT 就是要扭转这一趋势——推动大学快速增加毕业生数量，让他们准备好建设和支撑从矿山到材料的美国关键矿产供应链。」
能源部指出，入选大学提交的规划方案表现突出，目标是在未来两年内大幅增加采矿及相关供应链领域的毕业生和其他持证专业人员数量。美国正面临采矿与关键矿产专业人才日益短缺的问题，预计未来十年需要约6000名新的采矿工程师。能源部表示，扩大本土人才供给对强化国内供应链、减少关键材料对外国的依赖至关重要，并将带来数以千计的高薪就业岗位。
此次评选是能源部总额1亿美元的 PROSPECT 计划（Providing Opportunities for Specialized Education in Critical Technologies，「关键技术专业教育机会」）的一部分。该规划奖由关键矿产与能源创新办公室出资、由 National Laboratory of the Rockies 在 American-Made 奖项计划下管理。
入选的16所大学为：Colorado School of Mines、Columbia University、Michigan Technological University、Missouri University of Science and Technology、Montana Technological University、New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology、South Dakota School of Mines and Technology、The Pennsylvania State University、The University of Texas at El Paso、The University of Utah、University of Alaska Fairbanks、University of Arizona、University of Kentucky、University of Nevada, Reno、Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University、West Virginia University。
Energy Department Awards $16 Million to 16 Universities Under PROSPECT Planning Prize to Rebuild Critical Minerals Workforce
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI) on October 26 selected 16 universities to receive a total of $16 million through the PROSPECT Planning Prize, $1 million to each school. The winning universities will advance nationwide efforts to grow the skilled workforce required to produce, process, recover, and recycle critical minerals in the United States while creating good-paying jobs. DOE said rebuilding America's critical minerals and mining workforce is a key priority for the Trump Administration.
"America has abundant natural resources, but we need the skilled workforce to turn those resources into economic drivers that will grow our economy and create new jobs," said Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson. "For decades, we have allowed our mining and critical minerals workforce to decline and our domestic supply chains of critical minerals to weaken. PROSPECT is about reversing that trend by challenging universities to rapidly grow the number of graduates ready to build and sustain the American critical minerals supply chains, from mines to materials."
DOE said the winning universities demonstrated outstanding planning for innovative programs aimed at substantially increasing the number of graduates and other credentialed professionals prepared for careers in mining and related supply chain fields in the next two years. The United States faces a growing shortage of skilled mining and critical minerals professionals and will require an estimated 6,000 new mining engineers over the next decade. Expanding the domestic talent pipeline is essential to strengthening domestic supply chains and reducing reliance on foreign nations for critical materials, DOE said.
The selections are part of DOE's broader $100 million Providing Opportunities for Specialized Education in Critical Technologies (PROSPECT) initiative. The PROSPECT Planning Prize is funded by CMEI and managed by the National Laboratory of the Rockies under the American-Made prize program.
The selected universities are: Colorado School of Mines; Columbia University; Michigan Technological University; Missouri University of Science and Technology; Montana Technological University; New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology; South Dakota School of Mines and Technology; The Pennsylvania State University; The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP); The University of Utah; University of Alaska Fairbanks; University of Arizona; University of Kentucky; University of Nevada, Reno; Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; and West Virginia University.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：工业设施内查看平板数据的技术人员（资料图）。美国能源部 PROSPECT 项目官方图，公共领域。 / Technicians reviewing tablet data in an industrial facility (file image). U.S. Department of Energy, PROSPECT program, public domain.
