OBSERVER: Copernicus Relays Bringing Space Closer to People – the Case of Argentina
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OBSERVER: Copernicus Relays bringing space closer to people – the case of Argentina 1 / 7 Enthusiasm, entrepreneurship & space are in Space Latam’s focus. Credit: Space Latam It is indisputable that international cooperation is an essential condition for reaching global wellbeing objectives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). International cooperation is also of the utmost importance to the Copernicus programme. With the network of Copernicus free and open data users spanning the globe, the programme is an important contributor to SDGs and economies worldwide. Space Latam, an Argentinian representative of the Copernicus Relays, is an excellent example of how the global community benefits from Copernicus and its networks. As part of the Space Strategy for Europe, the European Commission established a network of Copernicus ambassadors: the Copernicus Relays. These act as local champions, coordinating and promoting activities related to the Copernicus programme, bringing benefits and opportunities for 2 / 7 people, businesses, start-ups, researchers and governments. Space Latam, the Copernicus Relay in Argentina, was one of the earliest organisations to enter the Copernicus Relay network. The organisation submitted their application to join the network in 2016, just months after the official launch of the Copernicus Relay and Copernicus Academy networks in Brussels. When applying, José Bosleman Medina, the Director of the Argentinian Copernicus Relay- to-be, modestly mentioned that Space Latam people are volunteers with almost no budget available to finance their activities, but reassured the reviewers that he had a fantastic, hard-working team with great potential, energy and network. Space Latam far exceeded expectations and now has a large team of young experts who provide support to Argentinian start-ups and SMEs in the space sector through mentoring, hackathons, workshops and other initiatives. It collaborates with local and national governments, not only in the organisation’s home country but also beyond. The recipe for its growth and success as a Copernicus Relay and space entrepreneurship hub in Latin America has, at least, two ingredients: developing space and business expertise, and focusing on the creation of the largest community of space entrepreneurs in Latin America. Camila Mucanna, Coordinator of Educational Activities at Space Latam (in the middle) at the Rocketry Workshop Campus Party Argentina 2018 with the Space Latam team of advanced space engineering students from the University of San Martin in Argentina. Left to right: Matías Dos Santos, Adrian Schvartz, Luis López, Camila Mucanna, Nicolás Conde, Tomás Burroni, Victor Astorga. 3 / 7 Credit: Space Latam Becoming a local Copernicus expert to help space entrepreneurship in Latin America Entrepreneurship and innovation are powerful drivers of any national economy. Space, in turn, provides a specific environment for entrepreneurs – fascinating, barely explored and brimming with opportunities. Seeing the great potential that Copernicus can offer Latin American business growth, José Bosleman Medina intensively studied the complexity of the Copernicus programme – after all, the most ambitious and successful Earth Observation programme of Europe is not a one-day project! “Informative presentations for entrepreneurs have always been in high demand in Argentina – there are never too many new insights or too much inspiration in this sector. Nevertheless, we can see how the interest in space as a source of opportunities is skyrocketing. The business world wants to know more about space; Earth Observation and Copernicus are also widely discussed in our Argentinian business community.” – said José Bosleman Medina. In response to this demand, Space Latam, using their authority as the Argentinian Copernicus Relay, set up a dedicated webpage on Copernicus as well as a local Copernicus information e-point. Additionally, through Space Latam, Argentina became one of the 19 Copernicus Masters Regional Associates that are entrusted to share information about the Copernicus Masters competition to their local networks. The organisation has a portfolio of initiatives to support space entrepreneurship in Latin America: hackathons, workshops, informational talks and lectures, expert support and thriving community; most of which intersect with the Copernicus programme. For instance, as the Argentinian Copernicus Relay, it was invited to participate in the Start-up Weekend Space 2016 to assist the participants of the 54-hour-hackathon in creating start-ups based on satellite data. “We helped the participants understand the possibilities of Copernicus and to create hands-on experiences for future innovators” – said José Bosleman Medina. This event was hosted by Microsoft in Buenos Aires, and it was the first event of its kind to be organised in Argentina. Being a Copernicus expert in Argentina, as well as helping Latin American businesses seize the potential of the Copernicus programme’s data and services brought the Argentinian Relay to various high-level events. One such event was the ASEAN Multi-Country Workshop on Space Applications (TAIEX-PI) in Chile, which took place on 7 and 8 September 2017. As a speaker on behalf of the Argentinian Copernicus Relay, José Bosleman Medina shared Argentina’s success in strengthening the ties between space entrepreneurship and Copernicus with the international community. 4 / 7 José Bosleman Medina, the Director of the Argentinian Copernicus Relay Space Latam (third from the left) together with the Space Team Europe in Chile. Credit: EARSC Soon, the Argentinian Copernicus Relay is going to be busy with the conferences “Space 4.0 - How to begin a Start-up using Space Data and Technology” at Columbia University in Paraguay and at Punta del Este Uruguay in March 2019. Apart from other space data sources, the conferences will focus on the Copernicus programme, broadening the knowledge of Copernicus of more than 500 players of the Latin American business and science communities. Strengthening the international space community Space Latam puts special effort into generating a community of space entrepreneurs in Latin America. The organisation realises that space might sound too mysterious and complicated even for the most talented minds. Therefore, it proactively approaches people with the main objective of conveying the message that space technologies are at their disposaland often, at no cost, as is the case for the Copernicus programme. For this reason, the organisation’s website highlights: “No matter how big and complex the challenge is, it is in our nature to face our fears, differences, give our best and exceed any limit”. The Argentinian Relay has two solutions for this challenge. First, it connects people from both business and space communities. “We encourage people to get informed about the opportunities that space technologies provide. This has proven to be very effective!” – shares the Director of Space Latam. 5 / 7 Having an international network is another important factor for success – the organisation has not only a local network of experts, but also global contacts, and their active participation in the network of (currently) 84 Copernicus Relays worldwide is evidence of this. In order to further expand the global space network, José Bosleman Medina travelled all the way to Belgium and was a welcome guest of the General Assembly of the Copernicus Networks 2018 organised by the European Commission! “Having a network of active organisations, institutions and experts is particularly important for us. For instance, we help start-ups get financial support. Space Latam does not have a budget available for these purposes, but we have something even more valuable: a network of allied incubators and accelerators as well as investor relations with space business angels. We want to drive cooperation and business development” – comments José Bosleman Medina. The Argentinian Copernicus Relay is also a great contributor to the growth of the Copernicus Network – José Bosleman Medina introduced the Space Agency of Paraguay to the Copernicus programme. As a result, not only did Paraguay become another non-EU user of the Copernicus data and information, but also the country’s Space Agency joined the Copernicus Academy network in 2018. “We are happy to contribute to the Copernicus ecosystem with our ideas, skills and willingness to cooperate. Being a representative of the Copernicus Relays brings us direct benefits: a label that is a sign of recognition from the European Commission, privileged access to information, documentation and a network of Copernicus experts as well as dedicated support from the Copernicus Support Office. We are very much looking forward to further cooperation with fellow members of the Copernicus network!” Factual results of the Argentinian Copernicus Relay Since becoming the Argentinian representative of the Copernicus Relays, the organisation has: participated in or organised approximately 20 events, approached over 25 private and public organisations for cooperation, welcomed more than 550 participants at conferences and workshops organised by Space Latam, reached out to more than 8000 people, through social networks, media (examples of these articles can be found here and here), TV events, and Business2Business networks. been featured in TV interviews, publicised in news outlets. “Copernicus has become an integral part of space technologies freely available for studies, research and businesses, and we see more and more people in Argentina and Latin America utilising Copernicus for innovations or optimisation of their current activities. Seeing this success and sustainability in business and cooperation, we get even more motivated to help our communities use the Copernicus programme.” – said José Bosleman Medina. The Argentinian Copernicus Relay Space Latam invites anyone interested in cooperation to contact them via [email protected]. 6 / 7 Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) 7 / 7.