Denver -  One of the striking aspects of this year’s American Society of Safety Professionals’ annual conference this week in Denver is the diversity of topics beyond the customary OSHA, culture, training, personal protective equipment, industry-specific issues, even the flood of technology topics.

Here is a sampling of what attendees can take on in educational one-hour workshops, 15-minute “flash” sessions, career advancement talks and other learning opportunities:

• ESG
• DEI
• HOP
• Sustainability
• Empathy
• Neurodiversity
• Mindfulness
• Climate disclosures
• Legalized marijuana
• Lithium-Ion batteries
• Mind-body correlation
• Suicide prevention
• PFAS substances

Safety has long used acronyms – OSHA the prime example. Now add ESG – environment, social and governance, DEI – diversity, equity and inclusion, HOP – human and organizational performance, and PFAS – per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, so-called “forever chemicals” hard to breakdown due to their strong carbon-fluorine bonds, and some posing exposure risks.

How many issues can a professional take on? How much brain bandwidth is there for learning new subjects? New skills? Some skills and issues cut across the entire profession. Others relate to more specific situations – suicides in construction, legalized marijuana in certain states, PFAS in certain industries. Organizational culture and leadership priorities and values also determine the agenda. 

What’s clear is this not your father’s or mother’s safety profession in 2024. The scope of work is broader, requiring continuing education such as the ASSP meeting, and keeping up with increasingly digital communications such as webinars, podcasts, websites, portals and others both inside and outside of the safety field.