WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.439 I want you to take a second and just look down 00:00:03.439 --> 00:00:05.820 at your smartphone. Or if your phone happens 00:00:05.820 --> 00:00:08.060 to be in your pocket, just look down at the athletic 00:00:08.060 --> 00:00:10.240 shoes on your feet. Yeah, that's a perfect place 00:00:10.240 --> 00:00:12.900 to start. Right. Because you probably don't realize 00:00:12.900 --> 00:00:16.199 this, but you are currently holding or wearing 00:00:16.199 --> 00:00:19.359 literal space technology. Exactly. We have this 00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:23.100 incredibly rigid mental image of what the space 00:00:23.100 --> 00:00:26.980 industry actually is. We picture a launch pad, 00:00:27.179 --> 00:00:30.760 a massive rocket, billionaires in heavy suits, 00:00:31.760 --> 00:00:33.759 mission control rooms. Right, the whole Hollywood 00:00:33.759 --> 00:00:36.259 aesthetic. Exactly. But today, we're doing a 00:00:36.259 --> 00:00:38.640 deep dive into some data from the Space Foundation, 00:00:39.240 --> 00:00:41.740 specifically this incredible presentation by 00:00:41.740 --> 00:00:44.399 their chief operating officer, Shelley Brunswick, 00:00:44.439 --> 00:00:47.079 at the Women Tech Network. And it basically proves 00:00:47.079 --> 00:00:49.079 that you are already standing right in the middle 00:00:49.079 --> 00:00:51.799 of a global space economy. You really are. And 00:00:51.799 --> 00:00:54.479 the crazy part. This industry is practically 00:00:54.479 --> 00:00:56.500 begging you to take a piece of it regardless 00:00:56.500 --> 00:00:58.240 of your background or you know what you went 00:00:58.240 --> 00:01:01.479 to school for Okay, let's unpack this because 00:01:01.479 --> 00:01:04.579 the numbers we are looking at are frankly staggering 00:01:04.579 --> 00:01:07.719 They really are and what's fascinating here is 00:01:07.719 --> 00:01:10.519 the massive almost comical disconnect between 00:01:10.519 --> 00:01:13.579 public perception and economic reality. Oh totally 00:01:13.739 --> 00:01:15.799 When you look at the current state of the global 00:01:15.799 --> 00:01:18.819 space economy, it's valued at four hundred and 00:01:18.819 --> 00:01:22.260 twenty four billion dollars. It's just huge. 00:01:22.459 --> 00:01:24.780 Right. That is not some niche scientific endeavor. 00:01:25.019 --> 00:01:28.060 You know, it is a massive economic engine and 00:01:28.060 --> 00:01:29.700 it's an engine that is fundamentally changing 00:01:29.700 --> 00:01:31.579 how human beings live. And it's not stopping 00:01:31.579 --> 00:01:33.359 at four hundred and twenty four billion either 00:01:33.359 --> 00:01:35.859 because the financial projections specifically 00:01:35.859 --> 00:01:38.560 citing Bank of America in this research, they 00:01:38.560 --> 00:01:40.840 estimate this economy is going to styrocket to 00:01:40.840 --> 00:01:43.579 one point four trillion by the year 2030. Which 00:01:43.579 --> 00:01:45.859 is just around the corner, really. Exactly. And 00:01:45.859 --> 00:01:49.840 by 2040, over three trillion. Trillion with a 00:01:49.840 --> 00:01:52.060 T. Yeah. And to understand how an industry scales 00:01:52.060 --> 00:01:53.920 to three trillion, you have to look at who is 00:01:53.920 --> 00:01:56.819 actually participating. Right. More than 80 nations 00:01:56.819 --> 00:01:59.840 actively operate in space, but literally almost 00:01:59.840 --> 00:02:02.140 every nation, every individual, and every company 00:02:02.140 --> 00:02:05.019 on Earth uses it. Everyone is plugged in. Exactly. 00:02:05.620 --> 00:02:07.980 The nature of the game has fundamentally changed. 00:02:08.560 --> 00:02:10.740 If we look at the historical shift, you know, 00:02:10.800 --> 00:02:13.740 40 years ago, space was essentially just two 00:02:13.740 --> 00:02:15.740 competing governments during the Cold War. Just 00:02:15.740 --> 00:02:18.560 this massive geopolitical chess match. Right. 00:02:18.560 --> 00:02:21.159 It was heavily militarized, highly secretive 00:02:21.159 --> 00:02:25.080 and very male dominated. But today, the pendulum 00:02:25.080 --> 00:02:27.319 has completely swung in the opposite direction. 00:02:27.759 --> 00:02:30.860 We're looking at an inclusive ecosystem that 00:02:30.860 --> 00:02:34.590 spans across 16 different sectors. So we're talking 00:02:34.590 --> 00:02:38.009 data analytics, energy storage, healthcare, advanced 00:02:38.009 --> 00:02:41.729 manufacturing, artificial intelligence, and virtual 00:02:41.729 --> 00:02:44.569 reality. And here is the statistic that forced 00:02:44.569 --> 00:02:46.830 me to just completely re -evaluate everything. 00:02:47.210 --> 00:02:50.159 In the United States... 80 % of the space economy 00:02:50.159 --> 00:02:52.080 is commercial. That's the key right there. It 00:02:52.080 --> 00:02:54.360 is. Because when we hear space economy, we view 00:02:54.360 --> 00:02:57.439 it like an exclusive VIP club, where only Elon 00:02:57.439 --> 00:02:59.939 Musk, Jeff Bezos, and NASA astronauts are on 00:02:59.939 --> 00:03:01.659 the guest list. Yeah, that's a perception. But 00:03:01.659 --> 00:03:03.280 looking at these numbers, it's actually more 00:03:03.280 --> 00:03:05.840 like the internet itself. It's this massive underlying 00:03:05.840 --> 00:03:08.819 infrastructure that powers everything else, from 00:03:08.819 --> 00:03:11.699 agriculture to finance. But on. It's driven by 00:03:11.699 --> 00:03:14.840 everyday jobs, consumer products, services, entrepreneurship. 00:03:15.159 --> 00:03:16.900 And the financial incentives for the everyday 00:03:16.900 --> 00:03:19.800 worker completely back that up. I mean, average 00:03:19.800 --> 00:03:22.900 salaries in the space industry consistently outpace 00:03:22.900 --> 00:03:25.639 comparative sectors. But the real realization 00:03:25.639 --> 00:03:27.680 comes when you look at the tangible outputs. 00:03:28.379 --> 00:03:31.620 If 80 % of this massive economy is commercial, 00:03:32.439 --> 00:03:34.740 they are selling the everyday items we just take 00:03:34.740 --> 00:03:37.039 for granted. Which brings us right back to your 00:03:37.039 --> 00:03:39.449 smartphone and your running shoes. because the 00:03:39.449 --> 00:03:41.849 presentation revealed that a standard cell phone 00:03:41.849 --> 00:03:44.189 alone contains three different types of space 00:03:44.189 --> 00:03:46.569 technology. It does. But I want to pause here 00:03:46.569 --> 00:03:48.530 because it's easy to just list things off. Like, 00:03:48.990 --> 00:03:51.990 how does a cell phone actually connect to a satellite 00:03:51.990 --> 00:03:55.030 or a space probe? So it really comes down to 00:03:55.030 --> 00:03:57.819 the brutal constraints of space travel. In the 00:03:57.819 --> 00:04:01.000 1990s, NASA realized that interplanetary spacecraft 00:04:01.000 --> 00:04:03.539 needed to be much, much smaller. Just to save 00:04:03.539 --> 00:04:06.379 on fuel and launch costs, right? Exactly. But 00:04:06.379 --> 00:04:08.580 they still needed to take high quality photographs 00:04:08.580 --> 00:04:10.960 of other planets. And the existing cameras at 00:04:10.960 --> 00:04:13.520 the time were far too large and required way 00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:15.979 too much power. OK, so what did they do? Well, 00:04:16.319 --> 00:04:18.980 a team at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory invented 00:04:18.980 --> 00:04:22.560 the CMOS active pixel sensor. They essentially 00:04:22.560 --> 00:04:25.879 miniaturized a camera onto a tiny microchip. 00:04:26.120 --> 00:04:29.410 Wow. And that exact technology engineered to 00:04:29.410 --> 00:04:31.970 photograph Mars and Jupiter is the camera lens 00:04:31.970 --> 00:04:33.910 sitting on the back of the smartphone in your 00:04:33.910 --> 00:04:36.370 hand right now. So every time I take a photo, 00:04:36.370 --> 00:04:39.490 I'm literally using interplanetary probe technology. 00:04:39.529 --> 00:04:42.040 You are. That is wild. And it's not just the 00:04:42.040 --> 00:04:44.399 camera, right? It's the GPS navigation that tells 00:04:44.399 --> 00:04:47.100 me where I'm driving. Yep, which relies on atomic 00:04:47.100 --> 00:04:49.500 clocks developed for satellites. And even the 00:04:49.500 --> 00:04:52.000 scratch -resistant glass on the screen traces 00:04:52.000 --> 00:04:55.079 back to the durable coating they had to invent 00:04:55.079 --> 00:04:57.579 for astronaut helmet visors. Right, so they wouldn't 00:04:57.579 --> 00:04:59.699 get scratched by space dust. It's the ultimate 00:04:59.699 --> 00:05:02.339 proving ground. When you engineer a solution 00:05:02.339 --> 00:05:04.720 for a zero -gravity environment with extreme 00:05:04.720 --> 00:05:06.899 temperature fluctuations and massive radiation, 00:05:07.560 --> 00:05:10.680 you inevitably create a highly durable, highly 00:05:10.680 --> 00:05:12.800 efficient technology. I have to call a timeout 00:05:12.800 --> 00:05:14.680 here, though, and play devil's advocate. Go for 00:05:14.680 --> 00:05:17.160 it. Because when I'm watching a mattress commercial 00:05:17.160 --> 00:05:19.439 and they start talking about space age memory 00:05:19.439 --> 00:05:23.420 foam, I immediately assume that is 100 % a marketing 00:05:23.420 --> 00:05:26.199 gimmick. I think most people do. Right. Are you 00:05:26.199 --> 00:05:28.620 telling me NASA actually designed my bed? This 00:05:28.620 --> 00:05:30.779 raises an important question about what technology 00:05:30.779 --> 00:05:33.560 transfer actually is. Because it sounds like 00:05:33.560 --> 00:05:36.399 a gimmick, but it is literal aerospace engineering. 00:05:36.939 --> 00:05:39.620 Seriously? Yeah. Think about the g -force an 00:05:39.620 --> 00:05:42.319 astronaut takes during the launch and reentry 00:05:42.319 --> 00:05:45.439 of a spacecraft. It's immense. In the 1960s, 00:05:45.579 --> 00:05:48.839 during the Apollo era, NASA had to invent a material 00:05:48.839 --> 00:05:51.300 for the seats that would mold to a human body 00:05:51.300 --> 00:05:54.209 to absorb that incredible shock. But then it 00:05:54.209 --> 00:05:56.389 had to return to its original shape so it could 00:05:56.389 --> 00:05:58.949 be reused for different astronauts. Oh, wow. 00:05:59.009 --> 00:06:01.990 So they created temper foam. And decades later, 00:06:02.250 --> 00:06:04.550 that highly specific crash protection material 00:06:04.550 --> 00:06:07.790 is exactly what we sleep on and what lines the 00:06:07.790 --> 00:06:10.649 soles of our athletic shoes to abhor the impact 00:06:10.649 --> 00:06:12.750 of running. That's incredible. And it's not just 00:06:12.750 --> 00:06:15.310 consumer comfort either. The sources dive heavily 00:06:15.310 --> 00:06:17.629 into life -saving medical advancements. Yeah, 00:06:17.629 --> 00:06:19.480 this is where it gets really profound. things 00:06:19.480 --> 00:06:23.120 like mammogram detection and MRIs. And I struggled 00:06:23.120 --> 00:06:25.800 to see the connection there at first. Like, how 00:06:25.800 --> 00:06:28.779 does launching a rocket relate to scanning a 00:06:28.779 --> 00:06:31.420 human body? It connects through the imaging algorithms. 00:06:32.160 --> 00:06:34.160 So when the Hubble Space Telescope was first 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:36.860 launched, it actually had a flaw in its mirror. 00:06:37.139 --> 00:06:39.339 Oh, right. I remember hearing about that. Yeah. 00:06:39.540 --> 00:06:41.620 And the images of distant galaxies were coming 00:06:41.620 --> 00:06:44.629 back super blurry. So the software engineers 00:06:44.629 --> 00:06:47.629 at NASA had to write highly advanced digital 00:06:47.629 --> 00:06:51.170 imaging algorithms to isolate the stars and clarify 00:06:51.170 --> 00:06:54.230 those blurry pictures. Well, medical researchers 00:06:54.230 --> 00:06:56.509 realized that if this software could spot a faint, 00:06:56.629 --> 00:06:59.290 blurry star against the blackness of space, it 00:06:59.290 --> 00:07:02.310 could probably also spot faint microscopic anomalies 00:07:02.310 --> 00:07:05.930 in human tissue. No way. Yes. That space software 00:07:05.930 --> 00:07:08.470 was adapted to spot microcalcifications in breast 00:07:08.470 --> 00:07:11.689 tissue. which led to non -surgical biopsies and 00:07:11.689 --> 00:07:14.230 vastly improved mammogram detection. It's taking 00:07:14.230 --> 00:07:16.569 the absolute extreme of human engineering and 00:07:16.569 --> 00:07:19.509 applying it to our daily survival. And that extends 00:07:19.509 --> 00:07:22.170 to the broader environment too. The presentation 00:07:22.170 --> 00:07:25.680 highlighted Earth observation satellites. We 00:07:25.680 --> 00:07:27.800 tend to think of satellites as just broadcasting 00:07:27.800 --> 00:07:30.220 television or internet. Right, the basic stuff. 00:07:30.300 --> 00:07:32.680 But they're essentially the nervous system of 00:07:32.680 --> 00:07:34.779 the global economy. They don't just sit up there. 00:07:35.120 --> 00:07:37.759 They power the precise weather predictions that 00:07:37.759 --> 00:07:40.120 allow commercial flights to navigate safely. 00:07:40.860 --> 00:07:43.040 They track global water resources so we know 00:07:43.040 --> 00:07:45.500 where drought is hitting. They even optimize 00:07:45.500 --> 00:07:48.060 agriculture by telling farmers exactly which 00:07:48.060 --> 00:07:50.399 crops are yielding and which need more water, 00:07:50.839 --> 00:07:53.519 down to the square meter. We don't feel our nerves 00:07:53.519 --> 00:07:56.019 firing to regulate our body temperature, and 00:07:56.019 --> 00:07:58.720 we don't see those satellites regulating global 00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:01.300 shipping routes in agriculture. But if you sever 00:08:01.300 --> 00:08:04.040 that nerve, the whole modern world just shuts 00:08:04.040 --> 00:08:06.839 down. Here's where it gets really interesting. 00:08:07.300 --> 00:08:09.500 Because you would think that venture capitalists 00:08:09.500 --> 00:08:11.959 and massive corporations have already mined all 00:08:11.959 --> 00:08:14.720 of this tech. You'd think the gold rush is completely 00:08:14.720 --> 00:08:17.660 over. You'd think so, yeah. But the data highlights 00:08:17.660 --> 00:08:19.819 what the Space Foundation calls the innovation 00:08:19.819 --> 00:08:23.519 gap. Right now, at the NASA Technology Transfer 00:08:23.519 --> 00:08:27.180 Office and the European Space Agency, there are 00:08:27.180 --> 00:08:29.639 thousands of patents just sitting there. Thousands 00:08:29.639 --> 00:08:32.799 of them. They relate to transportation, healthcare, 00:08:33.240 --> 00:08:35.679 pharmaceuticals, energy storage. They are literally 00:08:35.679 --> 00:08:38.179 sitting in a vault waiting for everyday entrepreneurs 00:08:38.179 --> 00:08:41.519 to commercialize them. It is a massive, uncapped 00:08:41.519 --> 00:08:44.700 reservoir of intellectual property. The research 00:08:44.700 --> 00:08:47.620 has already been funded by taxpayers. The engineering 00:08:47.620 --> 00:08:49.360 has already been done by some of the brightest 00:08:49.360 --> 00:08:52.039 minds on the planet. It's just wild. And the 00:08:52.039 --> 00:08:54.539 literal process of accessing this isn't some 00:08:54.539 --> 00:08:57.720 secretive closed -door affair. Anyone can go 00:08:57.720 --> 00:09:00.740 online to the NASA Tech Transfer website, browse 00:09:00.740 --> 00:09:02.720 through categories like robotics or advanced 00:09:02.720 --> 00:09:05.059 materials, and apply for a commercial license. 00:09:05.259 --> 00:09:07.620 Just like that. They are literally waiting for 00:09:07.620 --> 00:09:10.019 business minded individuals to figure out how 00:09:10.019 --> 00:09:12.600 to package these extreme environment solutions 00:09:12.600 --> 00:09:15.960 for the everyday consumer market. But OK, if 00:09:15.960 --> 00:09:18.940 it is this lucrative and there is a clear mathematical 00:09:18.940 --> 00:09:21.980 path to a three trillion dollar economy with 00:09:21.980 --> 00:09:24.139 thousands of cutting edge patents just waiting 00:09:24.139 --> 00:09:27.169 to be claimed. Why isn't every small business 00:09:27.169 --> 00:09:29.590 in the world pivoting to space commerce? There 00:09:29.590 --> 00:09:31.629 has to be a catch. Well, the industry is hitting 00:09:31.629 --> 00:09:34.909 a massive wall. There are three distinct roadblocks 00:09:34.909 --> 00:09:37.049 preventing this explosive growth from happening 00:09:37.049 --> 00:09:39.830 smoothly. OK, what are they? A severe workforce 00:09:39.830 --> 00:09:42.889 shortage, a widening skills deficit, and that 00:09:42.889 --> 00:09:45.070 innovation gap we just outlined. Right. So the 00:09:45.070 --> 00:09:47.830 workforce shortage seems to be a purely demographic 00:09:47.830 --> 00:09:50.450 issue across the US, the European Union, Japan 00:09:50.450 --> 00:09:53.429 and other major economies. The workforce is simply 00:09:53.429 --> 00:09:56.090 aging out. Yeah, it's a huge. The baby boomers 00:09:56.090 --> 00:09:58.190 who built the foundational infrastructure of 00:09:58.190 --> 00:10:01.009 this industry in academia, private manufacturing, 00:10:01.129 --> 00:10:04.250 government agencies, they are all retiring. And 00:10:04.250 --> 00:10:06.090 the critical issue is that there simply aren't 00:10:06.090 --> 00:10:08.250 enough younger workers coming in behind them 00:10:08.250 --> 00:10:10.669 to fill those empty seats. Which crashes directly 00:10:10.669 --> 00:10:12.850 into the second roadblock, the skills deficit. 00:10:13.590 --> 00:10:15.929 The presentation provided a really illuminating 00:10:15.929 --> 00:10:17.769 example from the height of the COVID pandemic 00:10:17.769 --> 00:10:20.950 in 2020. Oh yeah, the tourism example. Exactly. 00:10:21.309 --> 00:10:23.570 The space industry had plenty of open jobs available 00:10:23.570 --> 00:10:26.820 at the time. While concurrently, millions of 00:10:26.820 --> 00:10:28.899 people were displaced from the travel and tourism 00:10:28.899 --> 00:10:30.659 industries. You would think that's a perfect 00:10:30.659 --> 00:10:33.159 match. Right. But they couldn't just plug those 00:10:33.159 --> 00:10:36.500 unemployed people into the open space jobs because 00:10:36.500 --> 00:10:39.679 the displaced workers lack the specific modern 00:10:39.679 --> 00:10:43.210 skills required. It really highlights this intense 00:10:43.210 --> 00:10:45.909 need for constant re -skilling and up -skilling. 00:10:46.450 --> 00:10:48.690 The speaker made a very relatable point about 00:10:48.690 --> 00:10:51.070 how everyone today has to learn new software 00:10:51.070 --> 00:10:53.529 constantly just to function. Oh, absolutely. 00:10:53.690 --> 00:10:55.909 She referenced the very real struggle of having 00:10:55.909 --> 00:10:58.649 to suddenly learn how to use HubSpot or new video 00:10:58.649 --> 00:11:01.730 conferencing tools just to join a meeting. Technology 00:11:01.730 --> 00:11:04.250 is moving so fast that the traditional workforce 00:11:04.250 --> 00:11:06.629 is struggling to keep up with the baseline requirements. 00:11:07.230 --> 00:11:09.769 If we connect this to the bigger picture... It 00:11:09.769 --> 00:11:11.809 becomes clear that this isn't just an engineering 00:11:11.809 --> 00:11:14.990 problem. It is a fundamental labor crisis. Wow. 00:11:15.169 --> 00:11:17.950 And to solve it, the space industry has to completely 00:11:17.950 --> 00:11:21.070 abandon its traditional talent pools. The industry 00:11:21.070 --> 00:11:23.889 is absolutely desperate for non -STEM professionals. 00:11:24.389 --> 00:11:27.529 This part completely blew my mind. Because we 00:11:27.529 --> 00:11:30.570 think of space as purely scientists, physicists, 00:11:30.889 --> 00:11:33.250 mathematicians. Which we do. But the industry 00:11:33.250 --> 00:11:36.070 specifically needs welders. They need electricians. 00:11:36.629 --> 00:11:39.789 They need trades workers for the massive manufacturing 00:11:39.789 --> 00:11:42.769 sector required to build these components. Think 00:11:42.769 --> 00:11:45.049 about what a welder does in the space industry, 00:11:45.190 --> 00:11:47.669 right? They aren't just joining two pieces of 00:11:47.669 --> 00:11:50.450 metal. They're fusing alloys that have to withstand 00:11:50.450 --> 00:11:53.570 the vacuum of space, micrometeorite impacts, 00:11:54.110 --> 00:11:56.590 and thousands of degrees of heat during rocket 00:11:56.590 --> 00:11:59.440 propulsion. That is intense. It is high end, 00:11:59.919 --> 00:12:01.919 extreme environment manufacturing that requires 00:12:01.919 --> 00:12:04.740 master craftsmen, not just PhD students. They 00:12:04.740 --> 00:12:07.039 also desperately need business administrators 00:12:07.039 --> 00:12:09.659 to actually run these new startups and program 00:12:09.659 --> 00:12:11.860 managers to keep complex multi -year missions 00:12:11.860 --> 00:12:14.539 on track and under budget. Exactly. The presentation 00:12:14.539 --> 00:12:17.620 even explicitly stated they need artists like 00:12:17.620 --> 00:12:20.379 musicians, filmmakers and TV creators. Which 00:12:20.379 --> 00:12:22.600 sounds surprising at first. It does. Why artists? 00:12:23.100 --> 00:12:25.200 Because someone has to visualize these habitats. 00:12:25.379 --> 00:12:27.750 Someone has to tell the story. of this new frontier 00:12:27.750 --> 00:12:30.210 to inspire the next generation to actually want 00:12:30.210 --> 00:12:33.490 to work in it. And because of this sheer desperation 00:12:33.490 --> 00:12:36.710 for talent across every conceivable discipline, 00:12:37.629 --> 00:12:39.830 the old barriers to entry have been completely 00:12:39.830 --> 00:12:42.350 erased. That's the silver lining here. The space 00:12:42.350 --> 00:12:45.149 industry is now open to groups that were historically 00:12:45.149 --> 00:12:48.690 shut out. It goes far beyond vital initiatives 00:12:48.690 --> 00:12:51.850 for women and minorities. It explicitly targets 00:12:51.850 --> 00:12:55.000 underrepresented geographies. Like where? Inner 00:12:55.000 --> 00:12:57.659 cities, rural farming communities, different 00:12:57.659 --> 00:13:00.279 regions across the entire globe. The industry 00:13:00.279 --> 00:13:02.399 can no longer afford to be an exclusive club. 00:13:02.620 --> 00:13:05.600 So if I'm a displaced tourism worker or an artist 00:13:05.600 --> 00:13:07.820 or a welder listening to this and I hear there 00:13:07.820 --> 00:13:10.519 are thousands of NASA patents sitting around 00:13:10.519 --> 00:13:13.379 and an industry desperate for my help, my immediate 00:13:13.379 --> 00:13:15.580 thought is, great, let me add them. Right. But 00:13:15.580 --> 00:13:17.840 I can't just walk into the European Space Agency 00:13:17.840 --> 00:13:21.220 and demand a job. What is the actual bridge between 00:13:21.220 --> 00:13:24.740 me and this ecosystem? This is exactly what the 00:13:24.740 --> 00:13:26.960 Space Foundation Center for Innovation and Education 00:13:26.960 --> 00:13:29.759 was built to solve. They developed a highly structured 00:13:29.759 --> 00:13:32.340 five -step workforce development roadmap. And 00:13:32.340 --> 00:13:35.659 those five steps are awareness, access, training, 00:13:36.019 --> 00:13:37.399 connecting, and mentoring. That makes sense. 00:13:37.779 --> 00:13:40.399 Every single program they run operates on this 00:13:40.399 --> 00:13:43.039 pathway to take someone from zero aerospace knowledge 00:13:43.039 --> 00:13:46.179 to active participant. Step one is awareness, 00:13:46.519 --> 00:13:48.899 which is the foundational realization that this 00:13:48.899 --> 00:13:51.899 ecosystem even exists, that it's 80 % commercial 00:13:51.899 --> 00:13:55.360 and that there is a place for your specific skill 00:13:55.360 --> 00:13:58.980 set in it. Step two is access. You know, you 00:13:58.980 --> 00:14:01.710 need a doorway in. The presentation highlights 00:14:01.710 --> 00:14:04.970 several specific access points, like participating 00:14:04.970 --> 00:14:07.610 in the Women Tech Network, engaging with the 00:14:07.610 --> 00:14:10.049 UN Office of Outer Space Affairs, Space for Women 00:14:10.049 --> 00:14:12.870 program, or joining the Space Generation Advisory 00:14:12.870 --> 00:14:15.549 Council. It's about finding the open door that 00:14:15.549 --> 00:14:17.529 aligns with your background. Exactly. From there, 00:14:17.690 --> 00:14:20.039 you move to training. And this isn't necessarily 00:14:20.039 --> 00:14:21.940 a four -year degree, right? Not at all. It could 00:14:21.940 --> 00:14:24.779 mean getting a specific manufacturing certification 00:14:24.779 --> 00:14:27.379 or taking a targeted online course to upskill 00:14:27.379 --> 00:14:29.720 your software knowledge. Then you move to connecting 00:14:29.720 --> 00:14:32.639 with the industry by attending events. And finally, 00:14:33.000 --> 00:14:36.519 mentoring. Finding someone who has already navigated 00:14:36.519 --> 00:14:39.080 this complicated path to help you overcome the 00:14:39.080 --> 00:14:41.940 inevitable roadblocks. And to execute this roadmap, 00:14:42.539 --> 00:14:45.159 they have built incredibly robust practical programs. 00:14:45.840 --> 00:14:47.940 For adults and small businesses looking to transition 00:14:47.940 --> 00:14:51.100 into the industry, they offer the Space Commerce 00:14:51.100 --> 00:14:53.620 Entrepreneurship Program. What does that entail? 00:14:53.779 --> 00:14:56.539 This includes online webinars, virtual and in 00:14:56.539 --> 00:14:59.440 -person workshops, and entrepreneurial podcast 00:14:59.440 --> 00:15:02.480 series to highlight role models. They've already 00:15:02.480 --> 00:15:04.320 successfully helped hundreds of entrepreneurs 00:15:04.320 --> 00:15:07.000 figure out the literal mechanics of licensing 00:15:07.000 --> 00:15:09.440 a patent and building a business model around 00:15:09.440 --> 00:15:11.480 it. But the initiative that really stopped me 00:15:11.480 --> 00:15:14.100 in my tracks was the Junior Space Entrepreneurship 00:15:14.100 --> 00:15:16.240 Program. Oh, it's brilliant. This is aimed at 00:15:16.240 --> 00:15:19.429 K -12 students primarily high schoolers, and 00:15:19.429 --> 00:15:21.049 they aren't just teaching them to memorize the 00:15:21.049 --> 00:15:23.210 names of the planets or build baking soda volcanoes, 00:15:23.470 --> 00:15:26.289 which is what my space education looked like. 00:15:26.450 --> 00:15:28.269 Right, mine too. They put these students into 00:15:28.269 --> 00:15:31.250 teams, and the team's initial mission is to theoretically 00:15:31.250 --> 00:15:34.070 go to Mars and safely return. So they have to 00:15:34.070 --> 00:15:36.669 learn the STEM skills, the math, the biology 00:15:36.669 --> 00:15:39.929 required to survive that journey. But the brilliant 00:15:39.929 --> 00:15:42.690 twist is that once they return to Earth, the 00:15:42.690 --> 00:15:45.940 mission isn't over. They then have to form a 00:15:45.940 --> 00:15:48.600 company and commercialize a product or technology 00:15:48.600 --> 00:15:50.440 they developed during their journey to Mars. 00:15:50.700 --> 00:15:53.019 It is an incredibly sophisticated approach to 00:15:53.019 --> 00:15:56.440 education. By forcing them to commercialize the 00:15:56.440 --> 00:15:59.720 technology, they are learning critical 21st century 00:15:59.720 --> 00:16:02.220 skills. Yes. Whether they eventually become space 00:16:02.220 --> 00:16:04.600 entrepreneurs or go work in a completely different 00:16:04.600 --> 00:16:07.039 sector like finance or health care, they are 00:16:07.039 --> 00:16:10.360 learning project management, marketing, financial 00:16:10.360 --> 00:16:13.940 modeling, team collaboration, all under the exciting 00:16:13.940 --> 00:16:16.460 umbrella of a Mars mission. And for the professionals 00:16:16.460 --> 00:16:18.740 already working or trying to transition in, they 00:16:18.740 --> 00:16:21.659 host massive networking events. The annual Space 00:16:21.659 --> 00:16:24.360 Symposium in Colorado Springs brings in tens 00:16:24.360 --> 00:16:26.940 of thousands of attendees. It's huge. And recognizing 00:16:26.940 --> 00:16:29.039 that networking can't just happen once a year, 00:16:29.340 --> 00:16:32.799 they launched Symposium 365, a digital program 00:16:32.799 --> 00:16:35.700 to keep the global space community actively collaborating 00:16:35.700 --> 00:16:38.860 year round. It all comes back to that collaboration. 00:16:39.259 --> 00:16:41.659 Whether you are dealing with military, commercial, 00:16:41.879 --> 00:16:44.600 civil or international sectors, the technological 00:16:45.370 --> 00:16:47.570 multiplies when the community is connected rather 00:16:47.570 --> 00:16:51.230 than siloed. So if you are driving in your car 00:16:51.230 --> 00:16:54.070 right now or at the gym and you have absolutely 00:16:54.070 --> 00:16:57.799 zero background in aerospace. Yeah. What is literally 00:16:57.799 --> 00:17:00.740 step one for you today? Step one is moving from 00:17:00.740 --> 00:17:03.639 that awareness phase into the access phase. You 00:17:03.639 --> 00:17:06.079 go to SpaceFoundation .org. You look at their 00:17:06.079 --> 00:17:08.640 specific resources. You browse that NASA patent 00:17:08.640 --> 00:17:10.900 database online to see what kind of technology 00:17:10.900 --> 00:17:13.220 actually exists. To see what's out there. Exactly. 00:17:13.480 --> 00:17:16.180 And most importantly, you seek out a mentor through 00:17:16.180 --> 00:17:18.359 organizations like the Women Tech Network or 00:17:18.359 --> 00:17:20.880 the UN Space for Women program, which by the 00:17:20.880 --> 00:17:23.200 way are open to both men and women. You simply 00:17:23.200 --> 00:17:25.160 have to decide to step through the door. So what 00:17:25.160 --> 00:17:26.960 does this all mean? We started this deep dive 00:17:26.960 --> 00:17:31.619 looking at a hidden $424 billion economy. And 00:17:31.619 --> 00:17:33.559 we've traced it all the way down to the realization 00:17:33.559 --> 00:17:36.420 that your unique skills, whether you are working 00:17:36.420 --> 00:17:38.539 in business administration, whether you are a 00:17:38.539 --> 00:17:40.519 creative artist, or whether you work in a completely 00:17:40.519 --> 00:17:43.680 unrelated trade, are desperately needed to help 00:17:43.680 --> 00:17:47.140 push this industry toward that $3 trillion mark. 00:17:47.400 --> 00:17:50.200 They really are. The ultimate takeaway here is 00:17:50.200 --> 00:17:52.900 that space exploration is no longer just about 00:17:52.900 --> 00:17:54.930 looking up at the stars. It is fundamentally 00:17:54.930 --> 00:17:57.549 about bettering life down here on Earth. It's 00:17:57.549 --> 00:18:00.170 about jobs. It's about medical breakthroughs. 00:18:00.170 --> 00:18:02.630 And it's about everyday innovation. And that 00:18:02.630 --> 00:18:04.769 leaves us with a fascinating implication to consider. 00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:08.160 If high schoolers in the Junior Space Entrepreneurship 00:18:08.160 --> 00:18:10.740 Program are learning to build real -world businesses 00:18:10.740 --> 00:18:13.019 by commercializing the technology needed to survive 00:18:13.019 --> 00:18:16.319 on Mars, well, what if the next massive world 00:18:16.319 --> 00:18:19.200 -changing industry on Earth isn't invented to 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:21.779 solve an Earth problem at all? What if the cure 00:18:21.779 --> 00:18:24.220 to our most pressing terrestrial challenges, 00:18:24.660 --> 00:18:26.799 whether that's in agriculture, water management, 00:18:26.900 --> 00:18:30.720 or healthcare, is accidentally born from simply 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:32.579 trying to keep human beings alive on another 00:18:32.579 --> 00:18:35.079 planet. How does that change the way we view 00:18:35.079 --> 00:18:38.000 the absolute necessity of space exploration? 00:18:38.680 --> 00:18:40.420 That is an incredible thought to leave on. Thank 00:18:40.420 --> 00:18:42.559 you so much for joining us on this journey today. 00:18:42.880 --> 00:18:44.779 Keep looking closely at the technology around 00:18:44.779 --> 00:18:46.400 you. Keep questioning the boundaries of your 00:18:46.400 --> 00:18:48.740 own industry. And as always, keep learning.