The Government of Bermuda and the Secure World Foundation will host The Bermuda Space Sustainability Workshop 2020 next week to discuss potential space sustainability options for Bermuda.
“The space industry is currently experiencing a commercial boom, which presents economic opportunities for Bermuda,” said the Minister of Home Affairs the Hon. Walter Roban. “Therefore, the Government is taking action to develop Bermuda’s space and satellite industries as part of its overall strategy to diversify Bermuda’s economy and create high quality jobs and educational opportunities for Bermudians. Space sustainability is an important concept for space stakeholders and is an ongoing topic of conversation and debate within the space industry.
“I met with Secure World Foundation in 2018 to learn more about the issue and to explore opportunities for collaboration, which is, in part, what led to this workshop.”
The workshop, which is by invite-only, will be attended by international participants including satellite and insurance industry representatives, as well as government officials and academia from the United States and United Kingdom. Local attendees will include those in government, industry and nongovernmental research institutions.
Topics will include trends in the space domain, space industry development, and partnership models for space sustainability, among others.
“There will be a panel discussion on the roles a national government can take in developing a space sector, keeping sustainability in mind,” said Minister Roban. “I am particularly excited for the roundtable discussion at the end of the conference which will specifically examine space sustainability options for Bermuda.”
Part of the workshop, which will take place on January 22nd and 23rd, will also examine the key trends that are driving the increasingly commercial nature of the space domain, focusing on areas most relevant to a jurisdiction like that of Bermuda.
This workshop follows the annual meeting of the Space and Satellite Advisory Panel which took place on December 4th and 5th in Washington, D.C. where the Bermuda delegates discussed a draft of The Bermuda National Space Strategy 2020-2025. The draft strategy includes: building Bermuda’s reputation as a responsible, leading jurisdiction for space and satellite-related business; generating revenue from national orbital allotments; enhancing domestic space and satellite-related capabilities including training and development for youth; and further integrating Bermuda with the international space community.
The public may recall that the Ministry of Home Affairs established the Space and Satellite Policy Advisory Panel in June 2018 to provide advice on the development of the space and satellite industries in Bermuda.
“Bermuda is committed to sustainable space operations as it develops its domestic space economy,” said Minister Roban.