Donald Fondel II, CSP, safety engineer/specialist with Cheniere Energy Inc. and a member of ASSP’s Sabine Neches Chapter, is the 2018 Safety Professional of the Year for our Young Professionals in OSH Common Interest Group (CIG).

Fondel has been a member of the group since 2015 and a member of its Advisory Committee since November 2016. He chairs the Membership Development Committee, which oversees the group’s book club effort on Facebook, leads efforts to engage more young professionals at the region and local chapter level, and connects with all new members who join the CIG.

Fondel’s work as in industrial hygiene consultant led him to graduate studies in occupational safety and health management. While in graduate school, he worked as health, safety and environmental coordinator for a Fortune 500 oil and gas supply company, which led to a position at the country’s first liquefied natural gas terminal.

“The best advice I could give any student or young professional is to build your technical skills (prevention through design, industry best practices, regulation interpretation) by study/review and joining a professional network,” Fondel says. “Spending your early year’s getting a strong understanding of the regulations and their interpretation is important.”

Fondel also says professional networking, like what he receives through his ASSP membership, has given him access to learning material to further strengthen his technical skills and connected him with professionals willing to share real-world application of these strategies. “Although it may not lead directly to a new opportunity, the guidance provided is really helpful not only in streamlining your career progression but in understanding why we do what we do as safety professionals and ways to sell your value to the business units.”