The International Space University (ISU) President Prof. Nicolas Peter gave a keynote speech at the two-day China Aerospace Conference – the culminating event of the 9th annual China Space Day. China designated 24 April as the Space Day of China in 2016 to commemorate the launch of its first satellite “Dongfanghong-1” into space on that same day in 1970. This year’s Conference took place in Wuhan, capital of Central China’s Hubei Province. The event was jointly organized by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA), the Hubei Provincial Government, the Wuhan Municipal Government, and Wuhan University.
The China Aerospace Conference was attended by officials from Chinese government agencies, scholars, and researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, universities, research entities, and individuals from the private sector, as well as guests from more than 40 countries, regions, and international organizations. In particular, representatives from Latin America and Caribbean countries attended the event which placed special focus on the promotion of sustainable economic and social development as part of the first China-Latin American and Caribbean Countries Aerospace Cooperation Forum that was launched on that occasion. Also taking part in the conference were distinguished representatives such as the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) Director and ISU Alumni Aarti Holla-Maini, Marco Antonio Chamon President of the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB) and ISU Alumni, Clezio Marcios de Nardin Director of the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE) and co-host of SSP 23 in Sao Jose dos Campos in Brazil, as well as previous ISU Chancellor and European Space Agency (ESA) Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain.
Prof Peter’s speech showcased ISU’s unique experience and expertise in space education and capacity building, as well as the longstanding cooperation between ISU and China. Today there are over 500 Alumni from China, making it the second largest ISU network. Many Chinese Alumni are currently in high-level positions in both the public and private sectors and were also in attendance. The China Aerospace Conference included a main forum and four sub-forums, each focusing on areas such as space infrastructure to support sustainable socio-economic development; deep space exploration, and space science; the innovative development of the space industrial chain; global governance of outer space, and capacity building in space during which ISU was a key participant. The conference also provided an occasion for meetings between ISU and Gongling Sun, an ISU Global Faculty member (featured on the left of the cover picture with ISU President Prof. Peter) and various Chinese partners to discuss current and future partnership opportunities with the aim of expanding the International Space University’s presence in Asia.
