Dawn Wellman of Savannah River National Laboratory to Present at UW Oct. 7
Published October 05, 2026
Dawn Wellman
Dawn Wellman, senior fellow for critical minerals and materials at Savannah River
National Laboratory (SRNL), will speak at the University of Wyoming as part of the
School of Energy Resources’ (SER) Distinguished Speaker Series Wednesday, Oct. 7.
Wellman will speak from noon-1 p.m. in the UW Energy Innovation Center’s Encana Auditorium.
The free lunch presentation is open to all students, members of the campus community
and the public.
Her talk is titled “Beyond Extraction: Understanding Critical Mineral Challenges for
Resilient Supply Chains” and will offer an insider’s perspective on how cutting-edge
research is turning into commercial reality.
In addition to her role at SRNL, Wellman is the science integration lead for the DOE’s
Critical Materials Innovation Hub (CMI Hub) to break down the science, economics and
real-world deployment of mineral extraction.
She previously managed strategic programs and partnerships for Copper R&D at Rio Tinto,
where she directed the company’s North American critical mineral co-production strategy
from copper and served on the CMI Industry Council. Her background includes over two
decades at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, culminating in her role as director
of the Earth Systems Science Division, as well as service as chief scientist for the
U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Technology Innovation and Development within
environmental management.
“The School of Energy Resources has a robust history of meaningful partnerships with
national laboratories, collaborating on high-impact projects that drive energy innovation,”
says Christine Reed, SER director of outreach. “We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Wellman
from Savannah River National Laboratory. This marks the first time we’ve hosted a
leader from SRNL as part of our Distinguished Speakers Series, and our critical minerals
team, along with research partners across campus, are eager to connect and explore
new opportunities for collaboration.”
A livestream of the lunchtime presentation can be viewed at https://uwyo.zoom.us/j/96992218550.
For more information, email Reed at christine.reed@uwyo.edu.
The University of Wyoming has earned its Research Level 1 (R1) status from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, placing Wyoming's only four-year university with the top research universities in the United States.