National IGE Report: May-June 2026

Conversations in Europe and on the Homefront

uring the first quarter of the year, a pair of events an ocean apart underscore the unique role SAME plays in strengthening industry-government engagement by providing a forum where stakeholders from multiple sectors can connect, collaborate, and communicate as peers, aligned by a shared goal of enhancing national security.

The Society’s long-standing partnerships at the national (even international) level complement the enduring relationships built across Posts. Intentionally, what a member might discover when attending a national event or listening to a webinar hosted by the Communities of Interest should resonate locally, where building the bond occurs at the point of need.

Overseas Support. SAME’s 2026 Europe Tri-Services Regional Summit was held March 3-5 in Frankfurt, Germany. Supported by NAVFAC EURAFCENT, NAVFAC Atlantic, Air Force Installation & Mission Support Center (Detachment 4), and USACE Europe District, the bi-annual event addressed issues affecting military construction and infrastructure readiness in the region. The week provided a forum for practitioners to examine planning, contracting, design, construction, and host‑nation considerations shaping project delivery overseas.

The summit brought together over 350 attendees from 17 countries and was strengthened, locally, by participation from the Rhein-Main Post, Kaiserslautern Post, UK Post, Poland Field Chapter, Italy Field Chapter, and Ukraine Field Chapter.

Along with program briefings from several government agencies, the schedule was headlined by a pre-event workshop on federal master planning and two IGE Roundtables. These expert-led, interactive discussions, advanced conversations surrounding the challenges of delivering defense facilities and system support in Europe and improving cost estimates for military construction projects.

Partnership Stateside. In February, the Washington DC Post, in partnership with the Environmental & Energy Management Institute of George Washington University, held the Transatlantic Energy Security Symposium. This one-day event brought together Congressional leadership, defense agencies, and infrastructure experts to help build partnerships that will strengthen the energy grid in the face of global disruptions and domestic instability.

The symposium was positioned as an opportunity to coordinate on strategy rather than focus solely on risk. It grew out of conversations between the Post and the George Washington University Environmental and Energy Management Institute about the need for a forum to discuss energy security from both the U.S. and European perspectives.

The more than 120 attendees represented a cross-section of the professional disciplines that contribute to energy security. There were a total of five high-level panel discussions focusing on topics like the role of nuclear energy and other advanced power sources in building a resilient defense energy posture and the intersection of defense requirements and energy markets.

“I could not be more proud of what the DC Post and GWU EEMI built together with this symposium,” said Bree Beal, President of the Washington DC Post and recipient of SAME’s National IGE Award this year. “To see Congressional leaders, defense officials, industry innovators, and allied partners all engaged in the same conversation about energy security was truly inspiring. The discussion in that room was electric, and I cannot wait to see what comes next. We’re working on a white paper to address several key initiatives, planning topical webinars, and a follow-up symposium next spring.”

By bringing together diverse expertise in forum, the forum not only advanced the conversation on energy security but reinforced SAME’s role as the nexus between industry and government where collaboration can take place and partnerships can grow. “The quality of dialogue throughout the day exceeded every expectation,” said Beal. “This is what industry-government engagement looks like at its best, and it is just the beginning.”

The event is the latest in SAME’s continued efforts to address energy and national security. Earlier this year, the Society formed a strategic partnership through the Energy Security COI with the Association of Energy Engineers.