(May 16, 2023 – New York City) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today released The High Ground, its newest video in the Better Satellite World campaign. It tells the story of how one satellite company is attempting to build the world’s first integrated satellite planning and operation system capable of providing an integrated enterprise level view of the satellites, the secure networks that connect them and military forces deployed on the ground, sea and air. The High Ground is made possible by funding from Network Innovations U.S. Government.

You can watch the video on SSPI’s website and on Youtube. The High Ground is part of Reducing the Risks of Space, SSPI’s latest campaign that explores policy, law, technology and operations in development now to manage the challenging space environment of the future.

Inside the Story
In the modern world, satellites have become critical to defense, from monitoring for signs of attack to connecting war fighters and the machines that go with them. Because satellites are vital, they are targets for enemy action. The United States responded to this growing threat in 2019 by creating the U.S. Space Force, a new branch of the military with an ambitious goal to make sure that military satellite networks stay online even as enemies interfere with them, try to hack them or knock them out of the sky. That required something completely new: an integrated satellite planning and operation system of a sort that has never before been attempted.

To make the attempt, the U.S. Space Force turned to Network Innovations U.S. Government. The High Ground tells the story of how the company is working to build a platform to respond to the unique needs of the U.S. Space Force, connecting the broadest range of terminals and satellites – including on-the-fly resource management and the ability to keep communications flowing even when under severe attack.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(May 8, 2023 – New York City) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today announced the beginning of Reducing the Risks of Space, a multi-week campaign featuring videos, podcasts, live online conversations and a new issue of SSPI’s digital magazine, The Orbiter. The campaign explores the policy, law, technology and operations in development now to increase the safety of launch, spacecraft, in-space operations and crewed space missions. Reducing the Risks of Space is underwritten by the Space Shuttle Children’s Trust Fund.

The campaign begins today with a podcast interview with K&L Gates’ Elizabeth Evans and Kathryn Lueders, formerly of NASA (now retired) and a member of the Space & Satellite Hall of Fame. SSPI will feature videos on the challenges of dealing with space debris and what the space and satellite industry is working on to make space travel safer in the future. New content will be published weekly at www.sspi.org/cpages/reducing-the-risks-of-space.

“Two centuries of industrial development have left humanity with the challenge of limiting and reversing climate change,” said executive director Robert Bell. “Fifty years of launch and orbital operations have done the same for Earth orbit, cluttering it with an estimated 100 million pieces of space debris. Launch and space operations were already high-risk, as the Challenger disaster showed us in 1986. This new campaign will dramatically demonstrate that humanity’s future in space depends on limiting those risks and increasing the safety and sustainability of space missions.”

About Reducing the Risks of Space
Not so many years ago, launch and deployment were the biggest risks of putting technology or people into space. Today, space is growing crowded with multiple orbits, massive growth in the number of satellites, and new business ventures from private space stations and fuel depots to in-orbit servicing and operations. They join orbital planes already home to 23,000 pieces of debris larger than a softball, moving at speeds of up to 17,500 mph.

A sustainable space environment for machines and people is a basic condition for the space economy. It is how we will maintain access to orbit and achieve the commercial success the industry dreams of. Until now, the world has relied on treaties and cooperation among business and government to keep space safe. As the value of space grows, that approach is fast running out of runway.

Reducing the Risks of Space will explore policy, law, technology and operations in development now to manage the challenging space environment of the future. It will ask if enough is being done and, if not, how we can motivate greater urgency in finding solutions. The campaign will also look at business models and technology advances that hold the promise of heading off the dreaded Kessler Syndrome that could make low Earth orbit unusable for decades.

You can learn more about the Reducing the Risks of Space campaign on SSPI’s website.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(April 27, 2023 – New York City) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today released Truly Connected World, its newest video in the Better Satellite World campaign. It tells the story of how unified, trust-based satellite networks are providing connectivity to even the most remote and difficult regions of the world, bringing all of us closer together. Truly Connected World is made possible by funding from Isotropic Networks.

You can watch the video on SSPI’s website and on Youtube.

“Though billions have yet to go online for the first time, digital connectivity has faster than any other technology in history,” said executive director and producer Robert Bell. “But the more connected we are, the more vulnerable we become, because of the key missing ingredient: trust. Our new video explores what a truly trust-based network could bring to the world.”

Inside the Story
Every year, through relentless innovation, we’re moving closer to a world completely connected by wires and cables, optical fibers and radio waves. Many of those radio waves make their way through space. Satellites let us reach vast regions where technology on the ground is missing or costs too much. Today, their services are converging with ground networks as never before. The vision of a truly connected world is becoming a reality. But one thing is still missing: trust. Users need to trust that their vital information is secure – and that networks can handle the explosion of services running on them, because they have become essential to both life and livelihood.

Satellite companies like Isotropic Networks create solutions that deliver trust, including one called Pendragon. Using artificial intelligence, it combines different ground and space connections into unified networks, expanding coverage, eliminating failures and providing high-speed performance. It monitors every user and device on a network, automatically detecting threats and taking action to stop them. Solutions like Pendragon make it possible to bring internet access to an Indonesian village to automate a massive mine for the rare minerals that power our digital future to give a ship or plane the same connectivity you enjoy at home.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(New York City, April 26, 2023) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today opened nominations for the “20 Under 35” cohort of 2023. The “20 Under 35” will be honored at the annual Future Leaders Celebration in October during Silicon Valley Space Week 2023, produced by SatNews publishers. Nominations are due by July 17, 2023.

Every year, during its Future Leaders Celebration, SSPI honors its list of the “20 Under 35” (www.20under35.com) young space and satellite professionals to watch in the years ahead. “20 Under 35” honorees are employees or entrepreneurs under the age of 35 who have demonstrated initiative, creativity and problem-solving skills that created new capabilities, overcame major challenges, and ensured excellence in technology and service.

The “20 Under 35” are selected by a panel of judges based on scoring of nomination forms. SSPI will unveil the list in September. At the Future Leaders Celebration, SSPI will honor the “20 Under 35” and present the three top-scoring honorees with its Promise Award in recognition of their potential to advance into leadership roles in the industry. On the same evening, SSPI will honor its Mentor of the Year: a space and satellite executive who has devoted time and energy to fostering the next generation of industry employees and entrepreneurs.

“SSPI has honored 100 outstanding individuals with membership in its 20 Under 35 cohorts since 2018” said executive director Robert Bell. “On average, 45 percent of the 20 Under 35 are female and 55% are male. Their specialties range from engineering to medicine, science to management, sales and law. They offer a cross-section of the best of us from sixteen nations in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. I can hardly wait to meet the 2023 cohort that we will announce in September.”

Nomination forms are available on SSPI’s website.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Associate
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(March 28, 2023 – New York City) - Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) announced today that its Board of Directors has elected Katherine Gizinski, CEO of ManSat, as its Chairwoman and James Trevelyan, Senior Vice President, Enterprise & Emerging Markets for Speedcast, as its President. The appointments take effect immediately and continue through the end of SSPI’s next fiscal year in June 2024.

As CEO of ManSat, Katherine leads a team of experts in international spectrum regulation and market access. From filing services to customized consultancy, ManSat guides clients through complex regulatory environments, campaigns for new spectrum identification, and facilitates development of regulatory frameworks to support ground-breaking technologies coming to market. Before joining ManSat, Katherine worked with US defense contractors to bring commercial satellite and terrestrial communication technologies to austere environments in support of military, diplomatic, first responder, and commercial initiatives. A graduate of the International Space University’s Executive program, Katherine holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce from the University of Virginia.

James Trevelyan joined Speedcast in 2018 after 17 years in various leadership roles at Arqiva’s Satellite and Media division. He served as Chairman of the WTA for 6 years. At Speedcast, he leads the Enterprise business unit. The Speedcast global network serves over 40,000 remote sites across all continents supported by field engineers in 40 countries and customer support centers on six continents. James graduated with a double honors degree in International Business and Modern Languages from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland, UK.

“As our industry shifts into overdrive to seize opportunities created by technology change and billions in new investment, SSPI depends on the leadership of its officers and Board of Directors to understand the business from the inside,” said executive director Robert Bell. “Our programs and properties – from the Better Satellite World campaign to the industry’s Hall of Fame – are unique in the industry, and leaders like Katherine and James ensure that we evolve to keep pace with change.”

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through the dramatic stories of our Better Satellite World campaign (www.bettersatelliteworld.com). Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(March 23, 2023 – New York City) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today released Bringing Oil Smuggling Out of the Shadows, its newest video in the Better Satellite World campaign. It tells the story of how a British charity, the Royal United Services Institute, used high-resolution satellite images provided by Planet to expose illegal oil shipments to North Korea, making the smuggler’s job more dangerous and costly. Bringing Oil Smuggling Out of the Shadows is made possible by funding from Planet.

Bringing Oil Smuggling Out of the Shadows debuted on March 14 at the 2023 Space & Satellite Hall of Fame Celebration in Washington, DC. You can watch the video on SSPI’s website and on Youtube.

“Every year, earth observation companies are bringing more of our planet into the light,” said executive director Robert Bell, “including things that many would prefer to keep hidden, from illegal activity to acts of terror and war. If sunshine is the best disinfectant, Planet is among the leaders applying it to make a better world.”

Inside the Story
In 2017, North Korea shocked the world by launching tests of two ballistic missiles able to cross the Pacific and strike the U.S. One just missed hitting a commercial passenger flight headed for Tokyo. The UN Security Council responded with a severe penalty: a limit on the amount of fuel and crude oil North Korea could import. But two years later, the country conducted no fewer than 20 missile tests. With illegal oil traders operating in the shadows to supply North Korea, the UN’s attempt to curb the rogue nation had little effect.

A British charity, the Royal United Services Institute, decided to try a different approach. The Institute turned for help to Planet, a leading provider of satellite imagery. The Institute then worked with global security nonprofit C4ADS to review hundreds of images from Planet’s global archive. Using Planet’s high-resolution images, the Institute was able to identify individual ships engaged in oil smuggling activities. News stories followed, bringing attention to the United Nations investigators, and North Korea found it harder and more expensive to smuggle its way to success.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(16 November 2022 – London, UK & New York, NY, USA) – SSPI-UK, the UK Chapter of Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI), is delighted to announce the recipients of the SSPI-UK Satellite Personality of the Year Award: Joseph Dudley & Dr. Heidi Thiemann of Space Skills Alliance.

Heidi and Joseph are thought leaders at the heart of the skills challenge in the UK space sector. They founded Space Skills Alliance in 2019, the UK’s Think Tank on all-things-space-skills. Access to the right skills and the right people is one of the primary challenges to business success and growth. Space Skills Alliance is on a mission to help educate and inform the government, industry and academia about these challenges, as well as to offer proactive solutions and advice about what needs to be done to solve some of these critical issues.

Space Skills Alliance implemented the 2020 Space Census, the first activity of its kind, analysing the demographic make-up of the UK’s space sector, publishing a number of highly informative white papers on the results in relation to demographics, women and pay.

Their joint efforts in this area did not start here, as they were responsible for building the SpaceCareers.uk website while working with UKSEDS, the UK’s national student body for space, has grown to become the main resource for early-stage careers in our sector.

Both Heidi and Joseph have made a massive impact to date on the discourse around space skills, especially in UK government, and their work continues to be of critical importance to the health and benefit of our sector.

Betty Bonnardel-Azzarelli MBE, SSPI UK Chair, congratulated the winners: “Heidi and Joseph work on a critical pillar of our industry: space skills. The creation of a space census, as well as the mapping of the space sectors’ skills and competences in the UK provide valuable information. I look forward to the next generation of space professionals.”

Dr. Heidi Thiemann and Joseph Dudley said: “No one can go to space alone. It requires people with all types of skills and backgrounds, knowledge and perspectives, to work together towards common goals. Space is the great example of the power of collaboration to overcome incredible obstacles and to achieve great things. Our work in the Space Skills Alliance is driven by the belief that the foundations of the space sector are being laid today, and the decisions that we make about the kinds of values we embody and the people we include will profoundly and permanently shape our future among the stars. We are delighted to receive this award, and we hope that it will further highlight the importance of skills and recruitment to the continued success of our sector.”

Join us to celebrate the winners, not only of this Award but the winners of 2022 from other categories ASTERRA, Spire Global and Viasat, as well as our 2021 winners Hellas Sat (Christodoulos Protopappas), Speedcast and Willka Yachay and UltiSat.

About the Satellite Personality of the Year Award
The Satellite Personality of the Year Award is an award from the UK Chapter of SSPI that celebrates an individual for their achievements in the promotion and development of the satellite sector in the UK. The Award is presented each year at the Better Satellite World Awards Celebration, which honours organisations or individuals who have demonstrated the use of satellite to make a significant contribution to human welfare, good governance, safety, peace and security, improved education and other measures of global good. The first award was presented at the 2016 Better Satellite World Awards Dinner.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(1 November 2022 – New York City & London) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) announced today the recipients of the industry’s eighth annual Better Satellite World Awards. The awards honour established companies along with disruptive innovators who make the world more prosperous, healthier, better-educated, sustainable and inclusive. An international jury selected ASTERRA’s underground potable water leak detection technology, Spire Global’s use of weather and Earth Intelligence data to predict and mitigate environmental disasters and Viasat’s provisioning of high-speed connectivity to refugees of the war in Ukraine as recipients of this year’s awards. They will be honoured at the Better Satellite World Awards Dinner on 5 December in London along with the SSPI UK’s chapter Personality of the Year.

The selection was made by an international jury consisting of a broad cross-section of Industry thought leaders and distinguished professionals. This year, the jury elected to extend an honourable mention to Iridium Communications and the Smithsonian Institute’s Movement of Life Project for advancing understanding of how all living things move across a changing landscape.

“Each year we watch with awe as the commercial space and satellite community continues to play a greater role in addressing the major challenges of the human community in more significant ways,” said SSPI’s Director of Innovation and Host of The Better Satellite World podcast Louis Zacharilla. “We look forward to being back together in London for the celebration of these remarkable companies.”

The Better Satellite World Awards Celebration, a festive networking event and dinner will be held at Whitehall Place on 5 December. It is produced by SSPI and its UK and Isle of Man Chapters. The UK Chapter is chaired by Betty Azzarelli, CEO & Founder, AB5 Consulting.
 

The 2022 Better Satellite World Award Recipients:

ASTERRA
Potable water systems around the world suffer an average of 15-20% leakage rate, resulting in wasted energy usage, contamination or, in the worst cases, critically low availability of drinking water in already stressed areas. ASTERRA (formerly Utilis) developed and patented a new technology that uses reflected signals from L-Band polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) to detect potable water underground up to 2 meters. Using ASTERRA’s proprietary algorithm, potable water can be distinguished from naturally occurring or salt/brackish water. The technology can penetrate foliage and asphalt roadways, allowing detection of water leakage from utility pipes. Once the leaks are identified, field leak inspectors can pinpoint where to search for the source of the problem to repair the damage quickly and with the least possible waste.

ASTERRA’s new technology, called Recover, is a low-cost alternative for finding potable water leaks that is available even to small and rural water agencies, where they frequently had few options. The company works with small and rural utilities to provide custom packages to meet their needs, as these organizations often do not have GIS programs or a formal leak detection program.

Since its inception, ASTERRA’s technology has helped utilities worldwide save over 210,000 million gallons of water, 527,000 MWH of energy and 135,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions by finding and repairing leaks more quickly and efficiently. It does so by identifying leaks at a 40% lower cost than traditional point-to-point inspection methods and a 90% lower cost than fixed base acoustic leak detection systems. The technology is based on a remote pre-location inspection program, so it can be deployed anywhere in the world without requiring capital investment. ASTERRA’s technology also identifies leaks on the customer side of the meter, resulting in direct benefits for customers. Based on the technology’s success, the company developed a system to detect wastewater leakage and exfiltration from sewer lines. For its achievement, ASTERRA received the 2021 American Water Works Association Innovation Award.

Spire Global
Climate change continues to be a major and developing threat around the world. Spire Global has responded by using space-based data and analytics, provided by its constellation of over 100 multipurpose satellites, to help governments and the private sector monitor, adapt to and reverse the effects of climate change in several ways. Spire’s Earth Intelligence data provides crucial information on environmental factors, including sea ice levels and soil moisture, which can be used in climate change research and development of solutions. For example, the company’s data is currently being used to monitor soil moisture in Scotland’s peatlands. The peatlands cover 20% of the country and are one of the most efficient carbon stores in the world; they currently contain roughly 140 years of the nation’s total current greenhouse gas emissions. When the bogs are damaged, however, they become carbon emitters instead. Restoring the peatlands is crucial to prevent such emissions, and Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) is using Spire’s data to map wetlands and monitor their dynamics, providing necessary information on which areas most require restoration and protection.

In addition to Earth Intelligence data, Spire is able to provide advanced weather predictions in a constantly changing climate using weather data collected by its satellite constellation. Spire’s weather data and forecasts provide organizations with real-time information to prepare for extreme weather conditions such as wildfires, storms and cyclones and mitigate their effects as much as possible. For example, sectors such as agriculture and renewable energy generators can increase efficiency and reduce operational costs by using Spire’s data and forecasts to prepare for and mitigate disruptions caused by extreme weather. Spire also provides its data to maritime and aviation customers to help with route optimization and emissions monitoring. This lets these customers optimize fuel efficiency, lower their carbon footprint and keep their crews safe from hazardous weather conditions. For its collection of Automatic Identification System (AIS) data to track vessels for maritime customers, Spire Global was named the Data Solution of the Year for Transportation in the 2021 Data Breakthrough Awards Program.

Viasat

When the war in Ukraine began and the immediate resulting refugee crisis occurred, Viasat partnered with the regional government of Košice, Slovakia to provide free high-speed internet access to Ukrainian refugee sites across Eastern Slovakia. Viasat utilized its satellite-enabled Community Wi-Fi system to connect the areas most in need of connectivity. Once these areas of need were identified by the Košice regional government, Viasat’s Community Wi-Fi systems were installed in a matter of days to provide critical connectivity available to thousands of refugees.

Viasat focuses on unlocking the opportunities provided by internet connectivity for everyone, wherever they are, through its network. During the COVID-19 pandemic, internet played a crucial role in enabling people and businesses to continue daily tasks and operations. Viasat provided a reliable connection to enable many functions including staying in touch with loved ones, working-from-home, selling products, managing projects, processing payments and more. Satellite connectivity provided seamless access when businesses needed it most, particularly when their ground-based primary connections suffered outages due to strain. Viasat provides a full spectrum of home, business, enterprise, and mobility services offering high-speed internet connections virtually anywhere, enabling people across a variety of landscapes to connect with the people and services they need, whenever and wherever they need them.

About the Better Satellite World Campaign
Working with partner associations and supporting companies around the world, Space & Satellite Professionals International’s Better Satellite World campaign (www.bettersatelliteworld.com) is changing the global conversation about satellites and their influence on the economy, business and societies everywhere. The campaign was launched in Washington, DC during SATELLITE 2015. It has since become a cornerstone and a viral effort that is successfully communicating the incredible power of satellites for human good.

SSPI has published a series of stories and videos that dramatize the immense contributions of the “invisible infrastructure” of satellite to life on Earth, which are widely shared by individuals, companies and the media. The Better Satellite World campaign is available for repurposing by any organization or person who wishes to use the content to help promote the industry at www.bettersatelliteworld.com and through the Twitter hashtag #bettersatelliteworld.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(October 12, 2022 – New York City, NY) - The Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today presented the 2022 Promise Awards to Chiara Cocchiara of EUMETSAT, Donya Naz Divsaler of Caidin Biotechnologies and Dr. Anthony Yuen of McKinsey & Company and the Space Generation Advisory Council. The Promise Awards honor the three top-ranked members of the annual “20 Under 35” list of space & satellite employees and entrepreneurs age 35 and under who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the early stages of their career. The three recipients were honored at the 17th annual Future Leaders Celebration in Mountain View, California, in conjunction with Silicon Valley Space Week, produced by SatNews publishers.

“This year’s Promise Award winners are unique among our top honorees,” said executive director Robert Bell. “Two have turned their twin passions for space and medicine into distinctive careers, and the third helps Europe’s weather satellite service design future satellite missions. What they have in common are strong but collaborative leadership styles, coolness under pressure and the drive to achieve ambitious goals they set themselves.”

The 20 Under 35, Promise Award winners and Mentor of the Year are selected by a jury of industry executives who donate their time and expertise to reviewing dozens of nominations received from around the world.
 

The 2022 Promise Award Winners:

Chiara Cocchiara
Systems Operations Engineer, EUMETSAT

Chiara Cocchiara is a Systems Operations Engineer for the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). In her current role at EUMETSAT, she is responsible for operations preparation for future satellite missions with a particular focus on Earth Observation. Chiara manages the mission Reference Operations Plan and Handover Plan to Operations as part of this work. Since joining EUMETSAT, Chiara has held many different roles, each of which gained increased responsibilities over the previous role. She acted as the Launch and Early Operations Phase (LEOP) Service Manager for the launch of Metop-C satellites, a position in which she also needed to cover the work for a missing role in her team. Chiara initiated and led procurement of an improved solution for electronic logbooks for the Mission Control Center by writing up the requirements and analyzing the proposals from external contractors to determine the best fit technically and financially. She also wrote the requirements and oversaw development and implementation of the newest User Notification System at EUMETSAT. Chiara has a Master of Science degree in Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from the Università di Bologna, a Master of Business Administration from the Rome Business School and is a graduate of the Space Economy Academy, and she is currently working on her PhD in Space Economy at the University of Palmero.

Chiara is known at EUMETSAT for her strong leadership and communication skills, as well as her drive to constantly seek challenges and ways to grow in her own career and within her team as a whole. She is also known for her strong technical knowledge of EPS-SG missions, as well as a broad spectrum of Systems Ops activities. Before joining EUMETSAT, she worked as a Mission Performance Analyst and then a System Operations Engineer for Serco, where she was responsible for routine satellite operations monitoring and control. Chiara also served as Crew Engineer and Commander of a Mars analogue mission for The Mars Society. She has accepted several awards for her achievements, including the Young Space Leader award from the International Astronautical Federation (IAF). Chiara was also named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 in the industry category and an Innovator Under 35 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Outside of working hours, Chiara donates her time to several organizations. She is an active member of the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), where she is the Manager for SpaceOps activities and was part of the team that organized the Space Generation Congress at the IAC in 2015. Chiara is also active in space education. She writes articles for the Focus newspaper in Italy and volunteers at the Space Economy Academy, where she acts as Programs Director and Advisor. In these roles, Chiara has served as a visiting lecturer at multiple universities in Italy and Germany, where she teaches about space operations.

Donya Naz Divsaler
Co-Founder & CEO, Caidin Biotechnologies

Donya Divsaler is the co-founder and CEO of Caidin Biotechnologies, a startup that aims to improve human health and performance in extreme environments, such as outer space, through biomedical advancements. Under her leadership, Caidin Biotechnologies was accepted into Canada’s First Lunar Payload Accelerator for a product that monitors and improves astronaut health on long-term spaceflight missions. Donya also serves the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) as a Canadian Space Ambassador and also as a consultant for the Science and Technology Expertise Development in Academia (STEDIA) group. She obtained her Bachelors of Science in Health Sciences from Simon Fraser University (SFU) after attending Debrecen Medical School in Hungary and is currently working on her Master of Science in the Aerospace Physiology Laboratory at SFU. Her graduate studies focus on examining the effects of microgravity on physiological responses in the human body. Also as part of her studies, Donya was the lead for an ESA project looking at centrifugation-induced artificial gravity as a mitigation tool for the physiological downsides of long-term spaceflight.

Throughout her education and career, Donya has been a constant advocate for the aerospace industry, encouraging those from diverse fields and backgrounds to get involved. She co-founded SFU Aerospace, the second dedicated student-run aerospace team in Canada, which brought together more than 140 students from a wide variety of majors. Donya led educational outreach activities through SFU Aerospace during her undergraduate studies, reaching more than 20,000 potential students. Through SFU Aerospace, she led the formation of Decode, a paid robotics workshop in which undergraduates taught primary school students about the applications of robotics in space. Donya actively works with new students and leadership teams within SFU Aerospace to this day. She also serves as the science lead and payload developer of SFU’s Satellite Design team and is currently working on ALEASAT, a 1U CubeSat and joint project of SFU and the University of British Columbia, scheduled to launch in 2023. For her work with SFU Aerospace, Donya was named as one of the Top 25 under 25 by the Surrey Board of Trade and received the Rising Star award from the Northern Lights Aero Foundation. She has taken on a number of leading roles in aerospace physiology and medicine studies over the years with the CSA, the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA over the years.

Outside of working hours, Donya works as an ambassador for the CSA, delivering talks and creating new courses and curricula to teach people from all educational backgrounds about the aerospace industry. She has spent multiple years creating an educational platform to train students in complicated aerospace concepts and has used it to regularly train students on CubeSat design and operations. Donya serves as a senior advisor to SFU Aerospace students in her free time as well.

Dr. Anthony Yuen
Chair, Space Generation Advisory Council

Dr. Anthony Yuen is a Specialist Consultant at McKinsey & Company in the Boston office and Chair of the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC). Until recently, he was a practicing physician and Assistant Professor at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City. Throughout his 10+ years medical career, he has advocated passionately for the use of space technology to benefit health on Earth, including the use of satellite technology for telemedicine, satellite imagery for disaster response and Earth observation data to inform public and population health. Some of Anthony’s recent healthcare work includes a research project on the use of satellite and ground-based pollution data to predict COVID-19 caseloads using machine learning. He also performed a systematic review with the NASA Exploration Medical Capability Group on the impact of elevated ambient carbon dioxide levels in spacecraft on the stability of medications in space. Anthony served as Co-Director of the Weill Cornel – OweF Tele-Simulation Day, in which tele-simulation was used to train analogue astronauts and their medical ground crews to respond to simulated real-life emergencies during an analogue mission. He is a member of the Working Group on Space and Global Health at the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. Anthony also served as the Director of the Simulation-based Discharge Program at the New York Presbyterian Hospital, a multidisciplinary project focused on the use of simulation technology to enhance discharge education and preparation for caregivers of children with medical devices. Anthony received his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical and Space Engineering and his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Queensland.

Anthony has been an active member and leader of the Space Generation Advisory Council for 8 years in addition to his medical practice. He co-founded a project group within SGAC for space and life sciences when he saw that there were very few opportunities and connections available to young professionals in the nascent sector. The project group created a community of practice and a global online platform based on Slack to allow young people around the world to share opportunities, knowledge and experiences on topics of space medicine and life sciences. As of today, the group has connected over 800 young people and has been replicated as a model at SGAC, where a similar platform now connects over 3,000 young people across the world. Anthony was also Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Systemic Review Workshop on Space Medicine, a 1-year longitudinal virtual education workshop held with SGAC SMLS and UK Space Labs that involved 9 space medicine experts and 60 students and young professionals conducting a real-world systematic review of 9 aviation and space medicine topics. He helped coordinate SGAC’s first webinar series of “Health in Space” and promoted the importance of webinars as a tool to share knowledge and experience with members all over the world. This experience in creating webinars greatly helped SGAC with hosting future webinars, including over 150 in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic that reached over 10,000 viewers worldwide. Anthony is currently working on an online learning platform hosted by SGAC to help members bring quality space education anywhere.

Outside of working hours, Anthony has served in other leadership roles at SGAC, including as Web Coordinator and Treasurer before becoming Chair. As Web Coordinator, he overhauled the organization’s website and created the necessary infrastructure for the website to support global SGAC activities. As Treasurer, he standardized budget tools and processes to improve financial sustainability. In his current role as Chair, Anthony has championed broadening SGAC activities into 5 main pillars of events, scholarship, project groups, policy & advocacy and education & professional development. He is involved with many professional organizations outside SGAC, including the American Institution of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Aerospace Medical Association and the International Astronautics Federation.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

Steve will be honored along with this year’s “20 Under 35” outstanding young professionals at the 17th Annual Future Leaders Celebration on October 12 in Silicon Valley

(September 13, 2022 – New York City) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today announced that it will present its 2022 Mentor of the Year Award to Steve Bates, Director of Systems Engineering at Maxar. Steve will be honored on October 12 at SSPI’s 17th Annual Future Leaders Celebration for the attention, support, wisdom and guidance he has provided to young professionals and colleagues throughout his career. During the Celebration, SSPI will also honor the “20 Under 35” space and satellite professionals to watch in the coming years and present three of them with its Promise Award for outstanding achievement.

“SSPI’s Mentors of the Year are quiet heroes,” said executive director Robert Bell. “They are more interested in others than in themselves, and think more about the needs of the future than the accomplishments of the past. Without their persistent contributions to the success of others, our industry would be much poorer. At this time when the urgent need for new talent make headlines, it is especially important to honor theses people who help turn our industry’s potential into achievement.”

The 2022 Future Leaders Celebration (www.satfuture.com) will take place live on October 12 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, CA in conjunction with Silicon Valley Space Week 2022, produced by SatNews publishers. The proceeds of the Celebration go to fund SSPI’s educational, professional development and industry growth initiatives.

The SSPI 2022 Mentor of the Year:

Steve Bates
Director of Systems Engineering, Maxar Technologies

Steve Bates is Director of Systems Engineering at Maxar Technologies, a position he has held since September 2021. In his current role, he is responsible for managing a team of systems engineers and developing the safety roadmap for Maxar. Steve draws on his deep experience in aviation safety from a long and impressive career in the industry to help Maxar ensure that the company meets the demanding safety requirements for a crewed NASA spacecraft as part of the Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) for Gateway, a vital part of NASA’s Artemis program. He is also responsible for preparing Maxar engineers to safely execute new missions as part of the company’s business development strategy.

Steve began his career in the U.S. Marine Corps where he worked primarily in electronic engineering. He went on to become an Engineering Manager at Boeing, where he led technical groups responsible for integration and architecture development of large networked systems, including developing and implementing Network Security requirements. While working at Boeing, Steve served as the FAA-approved Safety and Airworthiness Manager with complete responsibility for Flight Deck design and requirements on the 737 and 757. In 2013, he was promoted to Senior Network Engineer at Boeing, a position in which he provided guidance on services and modifications for in-flight entertainment and connectivity systems. Steve then joined Panasonic Avionics Corporation in 2014 as Senior Director of Systems Architecture, where he oversaw several technical departments, including Systems Engineering, End-to-End Architecture, Software Architecture, Software Requirements, Simulation/Emulation, Certification and Engineering Technology and Research and Development. Over his long career, Steve has been a named inventor on 34 issued patents and on 41 published applications.

Throughout his more-than-35-year career, Steve has consistently served as a mentor not only to the engineers but also the leaders around him. Steve is known for his kind, wise and supportive mentoring style as well as his ability to illustrate difficult points with stories to better help new engineers find their footing on challenging projects. He maintains constant coolness under pressure and helps those around him do the same, especially during times of change and instability at work. Steve is also known for his humility and respect for his management and co-workers, as well as his frequent expressions of appreciation for his colleagues’ excellent work and commitment to helping others in the workplace, both on social media and within company communication lines.

Perhaps Steve’s most important strength as a mentor is his ability to provide important technical knowledge while also explaining it in an accessible way. One of his co-workers at both Panasonic and later Maxar describes Steve as “the first person that I have ever worked with that, in addition to quoting the industry standard, also provided explanation and alternative solutions and guidance.” This co-worker went on to say that she joined Maxar on Steve’s recommendation, and she is one of seven former colleagues whom he has convinced to join the company within the past year. He has made the transition to a new company, particularly during the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic, as seamless and pleasant as possible for all of his mentees as well.

Outside of work, Steve has consistently volunteered his time for industry and community activities. He participated in EuroCAE Working Group 72 as a technical expert in aeronautical system security standards and served as a core leadership member of the Aviation Information Sharing and Analysis Center ISAC for the Department of Homeland Security. Steve has also served on the FAA Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee for Aircraft Systems Information Security/Protection and the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics Special Committee 216. He gives his time regularly to his community as a girls’ softball coach and basketball scorekeeper and served as a weekly chaperone for a local teen center for several years. Steve is also involved in many local Catholic church activities and has been a volunteer for Special Olympics swimming events.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(October 24, 2022 – New York City) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today announced the beginning of Opening the Final Frontier, a multi-week campaign featuring videos, podcasts, live online conversations and a new issue of SSPI’s digital magazine, The Orbiter. The campaign explores how enterprising companies in partnership with governments are putting into place the practical foundations and critical components of a thriving space economy reaching from LEO to cislunar space and beyond. Opening the Final Frontier is underwritten by Virgin Orbit.

The campaign begins today with a podcast interview with Virgin Orbit COO Tony Gingiss, made possible with support from Momentus Space. SSPI will feature videos on launch and orbital debris management in SSPI’s Better Satellite World series as well as several from Virgin Orbit on the same day. New content will be published weekly at www.sspi.org/cpages/opening-the-final-frontier.

About Opening the Final Frontier
Space really is the final frontier. Since Star Trek first crossed TV screens in 1966, we have believed that humanity’s destiny lies among the stars. And in the third decade of the third millennium, we are closer to that dream than ever before. Today, after decades of imagining the future, enterprising companies in partnership with governments are putting into place the practical foundations and critical components of a thriving space economy reaching from LEO to cislunar space:

• Drastically lower launch costs coupled with an accelerating cadence of launches.
• Horizontal launch systems that make access to space available to any nation with international airports.
• A boom in launch sites as national and local governments trigger economic development of spaceports for vertical and horizontal launch.
• Inter-satellite communications capabilities with the potential to turn satcom in LEO, MEO and GEO into a global mesh network offering massive bandwidth.
• In-space operations vehicles, fuel depots and manufacturing facilities that, still in their earliest stages, are creating completely new capabilities with commercial value.

Continued progress depends on finding solutions to the human-made problem of space debris. It is a challenge to policy as much as to technology, and to our ability to cooperate as well as compete. But here, too, companies and governments are creating more effective ways to monitor debris of all sizes, to agree on avoidance maneuvering and enforce de-orbiting protocols, and to develop fast and flexible systems to target the most dangerous debris and remove it from orbit. The same innovation that gradually created the space debris problem also offers the best hope of resolving it to keep open the roads to the final frontier.

“Our multi-week online campaigns are focusing interest on the mega-issues impacting our industry and the world,” said executive director Robert Bell. “Opening the Final Frontier continues the online conversation started with Climate Sense and Untangling the Supply Chain earlier this year. After decades as an almost-invisible niche industry, space and satellite are now on the agenda of government and business leaders around the world.”

You can learn more about the Opening the Final Frontier campaign on SSPI’s website.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(July 14, 2022 – New York City) – After an election by the membership, the Board of Directors of Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) welcomes two new Directors for three-year terms beginning July 1:

• Andre Jones, Vice President, Kratos Defense and Security Solutions
• Christodoulos Protopapas, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Hellas Sat

The Board has also appointed SpaceX Director of Commercial Launch Sales Robert Carlisle to complete the term of Jonathan Hofeller, Vice President of Starlink and Commercial Sales at SpaceX.

“The latest election confirms our Board’s determination to increase the diversity of its membership and continue expanding its geographic and sector coverage,” said executive director Robert Bell.  “I am grateful to Nicole Robinson of Ursa Space Systems for her two years of service as President and Chair of our Board and am especially glad that we get to retain her as a Director for the next three years.  Appointed by the Board to succeed her is Katherine Gizinski of ManSat, who has already demonstrated a strong, clear and collaborative approach to leadership as our President over the past fiscal year.

Continuing in service on SSPI’s Board of Directors are:

• Julie Bettinger, Vice President, Corporate Marketing & Communications, ST Engineering iDirect
• Josef Bogosian, Vice President, Global Sales & Marketing, Commercial Satellites, Boeing
• Jonathan Crawford, President & Chief Executive Officer, The SPACECONNECTION
• Negar Feher, Vice President, Business Development, Momentus
• Tony Gingiss, Chief Operating Officer, Virgin Orbit
• Katherine Gizinski (Chair), Chief Executive Officer, ManSat
• James Hinds, Chief Executive Officer, Airbus OneWeb Satellites
• Aaron Lewis, Vice President, Corporate Communications & Government Relations, Arianespace, Inc.
• Sharyn Nerenberg (Treasurer), Vice President, Corporate Communications, Hughes Network Systems
• Marie-Pierre Pluvinage, Director, Business Development, Connected Intelligence, Airbus US Space & Defense
• Nicole Robinson, President, Ursa Space Systems
• Mike Safyan, Vice President of Launch, Planet
• Dr. Walter Scott, Executive Vice President & Chief Technology Officer, Maxar
• James Trevelyan, Senior Vice President, Global Sales, Enterprise, Speedcast
• Jeremy Turpin, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Isotropic Systems
• Mark Witsaman, Vice President, Product Engineering, Globalstar
• Elias Zaccack, Executive Vice President, Global Sales, SES

Elizabeth Evans of K&L Gates serves as General Council.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(June 22, 2022 – New York City) – Space and Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today announced the promotion of Tamara Bond-Williams to Director of Engagement. Tamara previously served as SSPI’s Membership Director since 2001. Over the course of 21 years of service to SSPI’s members, her role and responsibilities have expanded to meet the changing needs of the association.

In the last 4 years, SSPI has introduced Corporate Membership and Corporate Partnership, which provide a dynamic set of benefits and opportunities that can be leveraged by companies and their employees. Additionally, in 2022, SSPI introduced the concept of a multi-platform campaign, which allows a concentrated content focus on a particular topic to be leveraged by companies. In both cases, the level of engagement support needed by companies to make the most of their opportunities is high and demands a comprehensive approach to developing and sustaining that engagement.

The same is true of other new SSPI initiatives. The Space Business Qualified online training course, developed in partnership with GVF and SatProf, delivers a 360-degree view of the industry to new hires and newly-promoted employees. Aside from its benefit to individuals, it fills a gap in the training content available to human resource departments and requires a deeper engagement with HR professionals in our industry. A new SSPI Job Board and International Space Directory program will further expand the organizations and individuals that SSPI must serve effectively.  

In reflecting on her new role, Tamara said, “I’m excited about this next chapter of my work with SSPI, and particularly wish to thank SSPI-WISE, our women’s group, for inspiring me to rethink how best to meet these responsibilities. SSPI-WISE’s work in attracting women to the industry, and of mentoring, elevating and connecting women within the industry is another aspect of engagement which I hope to build upon, because I have directly benefited myself.”

“Tamara has seen SSPI through multiple transitions in our mission over the years,” said executive director Robert Bell. “All our current programs, events and member benefits bear her mark, and engagement has been at the center of them. She has grown to meet each new challenge and taking overall responsibility for the many different ways we now engage with the industry is a natural next step.”

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(September 8, 2022 – New York City) – The Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today announced the fifth annual “20 Under 35” list of outstanding young space and satellite professionals age 35 and under. The honorees will be celebrated at SSPI’s 17th annual Future Leaders Celebration on October 12 during Silicon Valley Space Week, produced by SatNews publishers.

SSPI’s annual list of the “20 Under 35” features 20 employees and entrepreneurs to keep your eye on in coming years. They were selected from nominations submitted by the membership and evaluated by a panel of judges made up of many of the Mentors supporting SSPI’s student outreach programs. At the Future Leaders Celebration, the three top-ranked members of the 20 Under 35 will be named as this year’s Promise Award winners.

“This is the most global group of honorees we have seen in five years of the 20 Under 35 program, with executives and entrepreneurs from seven nations,” said executive director Robert Bell. “They work in satellite fleet operations, spacecraft manufacturing, satellite service delivery, meteorology, testing, robotics, space medicine, and the cutting edge of research into the systems of the future. They are people we should all get to know if we can – because we may be working for them someday.”
 

The 20 Under 35 of 2022:

• Sabrina Alam, Senior Specialist, Social & Environmental Impact, SES
• Charis Angeli, Satellite Controller, Hellas Sat
• Dr. Olivia Borgue, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Interdisciplinary Centre of Security, Reliability & Trust, University of Luxembourg
• Kevin Burville, Systems Engineer, MDA
• Chiara Cocchiara, Systems Operations Engineer, EUMETSAT
• Donya Naz Divsaler, Co-Founder & CEO, Caidin Biotechnologies
• Joakim Espeland, CEO, QuadSAT
• Federico Giusto, Space Systems Engineer, ispace
• Robert Hawkins, Modeling and Simulation Engineer, Boeing
• Trina Jefferson, Systems Engineer, Ball Aerospace
• Ryan Jeffrey, Principal Satellite Engineer, Sidus Space
• Saroj Kumar, Mission Designer for Advanced Propulsion Systems, Propulsion Research Center, University of Alabama in Huntsville
• Dr. Vivek Muralidharan, Research Associate, University of Luxembourg
• Mariam Naseem, PhD student, Planetary Geology, University of Maryland, College Park (former: Canadian Space Agency)
• Angga Risnando, Product & Technology Incubation, Telkomsat
• Alvaro Sanchez, CEO, Integrasys
• James Spicer, Principal Aerospace Engineer, SpaceLink
• Jenna Tiwana, European Business Development & Partnerships Officer, ispace
• Nathan Tat, Science and Space Financial Analyst, KBR
• Dr. Anthony Yuen, Chair, Space Generation Advisory Council

Full profiles of the 20 Under 35 will be available shortly at www.20under35.com.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org

(January 23, 2023 – New York City) – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) today announced the beginning of Bridging the Broadband Gap, a multi-week campaign featuring videos, podcasts, live online conversations and a new issue of SSPI’s digital magazine, The Orbiter. The campaign explores the expanding role of satellite broadband in bringing education, connection, humanitarian relief and business services to the unserved and underserved regions of the world. Bridging the Broadband Gap is underwritten by Hughes.

The campaign begins today with a podcast interview with Hughes VP of North American Sales Randy Anders and Hughes VP of the International Division Vaibhav Magow. SSPI will feature videos on how satellite provides the benefits of connectivity to places never thought possible in SSPI’s Better Satellite World campaign on the same day. New content will be published weekly at www.sspi.org/cpages/bridging-the-broadband-gap.

About Bridging the Broadband Gap
Now more than ever, humans need connection to thrive. Satellite has the potential to massively shrink the digital divide in a generation. Will we succeed?

Satellite has been used to deliver the internet since the 1990s. Today, technology change, new orbits and new delivery models offer the potential for revolutionary progress in connecting the unconnected. The race is on to deliver more bandwidth to levels never seen before – levels that can meet the needs of millions living beyond the network’s edge while providing an adequate return on the significant investment required.

“After many years when satellite broadband was hobbled by high cost and bandwidth constraints, our industry is delivering revolutionary improvements in cost, bandwidth, quality of service and business models,” said executive director Robert Bell. “In Bridging the Broadband Gap, we will look at case studies, impacts on lives and economies and how broadband via satellite may even bring new levels of flexibility and security to the world’s network of networks.”

You can learn more about the Bridging the Broadband Gap campaign on SSPI’s website.

About SSPI
Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for transformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.

For More Information
Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Space & Satellite Professionals International
vkrisman@sspi.org