By Hannah Ashford
The Karman Project is pleased to announce the selection of 15 Fellows for the third edition of the Karman Fellowship Programme.
The 15 selected Fellows represent nine nationalities and six continents, coming from the startup, cultural, venture capital, research, space agency and industry sectors alike. TheFellows are considered to be change-makers and global leaders who are shaping the future of the space sector, fostering a desire to create positive impact and cooperatively address challenges in space.
Whether it is leading cutting-edge cancer research in microgravity (Tricia Larose, Principal Investigator for Tumors in Space, University of Oslo), mitigating wildfires using space technologies (Martin Langer, Chief Technology Officer at OroraTech), defining the future of human spaceflight (Hazzaa AlMansoori, MBRSC Astronaut; Balachandar Ramamurthy, Director of Flight Safety at SpaceX) or more, the 2022 Karman Fellows are already creating immeasurable impact in their respective fields, and are looking to leverage the Karman Fellowship to increase that impact for the benefit of humanity.
The Fellows were selected from over 200 carefully considered candidates from around the world, 50 of whom were presented to the Karman Selection Board for the final decision. The 2022 Selection Board convened virtually on 30th April 2022 and was curated to consist of 25 highly respected and accomplished professionals, who likewise represent a fine intersection of disciplines, industries and cultures. For the third year in a row, the Board was chaired by Mr. Jean-Jacques Dordain, former Director General of the European Space Agency. The list of Selection Board Members was announced via LinkedIn on 28th April 2022 and is accessible here .
The selected Karman Fellows will participate in various leadership and community-building activities throughout the course of the Fellowship, including intimate strategic roundtable discussions and other activations designed to support the Fellows as they declare personal commitments towards space-related agendas. As a ‘space-for-impact’ foundation, the Karman Project will support the Fellows to address six key ‘Impact Themes’ (Space-for: Sustainability, Education, Empowerment, Cooperation, Science and Inspiration).
“Cooperation is at the heart of our mission, and we look to the greatest challenges in space - and in the hands of space technologies - understanding how these can be addressed with cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary collaboration,” says Hannah Ashford, Director of Community & Fellowship at the Karman Project.
This year, the Karman Fellows will meet in Paris, France from 14th-17th September 2022 for Karman Week, the flagship event of the Fellowship in which Karman Fellows are gathered together with global leaders for a series of social activities, strategic discussions and workshops. The four-day event culminates in the foundation’s annual invite-only Gala Dinner (to be hosted on Saturday, 17th September 2022), where Fellows are invited to present their Karman Commitments to leaders in space and adjacent industries.
The Karman Project additionally continues to build a strong network of global partners who are equally dedicated to supporting the Karman Fellows and wider community, including the ‘Karman Pioneers’ - those candidates who were shortlisted among the top 50. Partnership activities will commence in June 2022, with The Karman Project set to co-host the second edition of the Smart Space MBA Elective at the University of Oxford, pursuant to their partnership with the University of Oxford’s Space Initiative that was announced in November 2021 .
The profiles of the 2022 Karman Fellows and the Selection Board Members will be made available via the Karman Project website in late May 2022.
About the Karman Fellowship Programme
The Karman Fellowship Programme is a one-year leadership programme designed to foster trust, independent dialogue and cooperation between 15 selected Karman Fellows who are below the age of 45 and have achieved outstanding accomplishments in space. Over the course of the Programme, Fellows strengthen personal relations, meet with global leaders in technology, science, business, politics and the arts, and take personal commitments to further advance space-related agendas for the betterment of humanity.
About the Karman Project
The Karman Project strengthens trust, fosters independent dialogue and encourages cooperation between global leaders in business, technology, politics, science and the arts who want to positively impact space. The Karman Project is a nonprofit and independent foundation headquartered in Germany.
Contact
Hannah Ashford
Director, Fellowship & Community
Email: hannah@karmanproject.org
Website: karmanproject.org
Annexure
Karman Fellows 2022:
- Joseph Abakunda, Chief Strategy Officer at Rwanda Space Agency (Rwanda)
- Siti Nur Aazzah Abdul Aziz, Deputy CEO of Network Integrity Assurance Technologies (Brunei)
- Hazzaa AlMansoori, MBRSC Astronaut (United Arab Emirates)
- Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian, Artist of Nelly Ben Hayoun Studios, SETI Institute & WeTransfer (France)
- Theresa Condor, Chief Operating Officer at Spire Global (United States)
- David Dana, Head of Disruptive Technologies & Innovation VC Investments at European Investment Fund (France)
- Melania Guerra, Director of Science Strategy at Planet (Costa Rica)
- Martin Langer, Chief Technology Officer at OroraTech (Austria)
- Tricia Larose, Principal Investigator, Tumors in Space, University of Oslo (Canada)
- Mike Lindsay, Chief Technology Officer at Astroscale Global Group (United States)
- Xin Liu, Artist, Engineer & Arts Curator at MIT Media Lab Space Exploration Initiative (China)
- Balachandar Ramamurthy, Director of Flight Safety at SpaceX (United States)
- Erika Wagner, Senior Director Emerging Market Development at Blue Origin (United States)
- Grier Wilt, EVA Flight Controller at NASA (United States)
- Dongkun Xia, Co-Founder & VP at Galactic Energy Beijing Space Technology (China)
