SpaceQ Space news and analysis.
Space Canada today revealed details of its inaugural annual conference called Spacebound, including the fact that Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen will be the keynote speaker at the opening Parliamentary Reception on Monday, October 17, 2022.
The Spacebound conference will be held October 17 – 19, 2022 in Ottawa. On the first day, called Space Day on the Hill, and only open to Space Canada members, will be a workshop in the morning followed by afternoon meetings with government officials. The opening Parliamentary Reception is between 5-7 pm and is open to all registrants, though there is no cost for government officials, they need only RSVP to the conference organizers.
Day two is open all to conference registrants and consists of two keynotes, a Euroconsult presentation on space trends and the market along with panel discussions on satellite communications, government/commercial collaboration, science, talent acquisition, and launch. There will also be an evening reception.
Day three is not quite a full day, ending at 2:00 pm and includes two keynotes, a session on government funding programs and three panel discussions on national security and defence, a National Space Council, and finance and investment. An optional tour in the afternoon is also on the schedule, though there are no details on what the tour is as of yet.
As a new industry association, and one that aims to supplant the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada as Canada’s primary space association, there is some pressure in organizing and putting on a conference that industry will find beneficial and which government will pay attention to.
One panel in particular that many will be eager to attend is on a National Space Council. Space Canada is pushing for a US style National Space Council to be created. Stakeholders that SpaceQ has discussed this topic with all readily agree that such an advising body is important so that industry and other stakeholders can directly interact with the government on a variety of policy issues.
A new conference website is now online at https://space-bound.ca/ and registration is open.
