The Asia-Pacific region in the area of the globe most often cited as setting the pace for math and science education, as emerging space powers such as India use their programs not to attract children to space-related careers but to identify the best of the thousands interested in working for ISRO, the Indian Space Research Organisation. “We have something like 31 percent of our population who are below 14 years of age. That makes something like 172 million children under the age of 14,” says VS Hegde, ISRO’s scientific secretary. “We have a number of programs to try and attract these children. We hold science clubs. We hold quizzes in schools. We conduct exhibitions. Now, all of these efforts won’t reach all of these young children, so a little a while ago, we launched a tele-education supported by an exclusive education satellite (Edu-Sat). ISRO launched the India Institute of Space Technology (IIST) to educate future engineers, and gaining entry into the institute is very competitive, as graduates are assured of having a job at ISRO. “For this year, we wanted to take some 350 youngsters from this program into our fold. More than 80,000 people wrote exams. That is the type of interest that the young generation has today to join the space program,” says Hegde.
While large parts of India still are not connected to the Internet, a career in space still remains popular. “The young people that are connected, however, are showing an interest in space and space programs. A good number of Edu-Sat virtual classrooms are in urban areas,” says Hegde. The challenge for ISRO is to make the space industry more accessible throughout the country. “We want to make the Space program known in all corners of the country, but we need to work with the people to do this. This will bring more and more young talent into space. We are targeting many programs to reach out to the young people in the country. The subjects of space, science and technology are very exciting. We find that young minds in urban areas are highly attracted to this. When it comes to reaching out to young minds in rural areas, we consciously see that we are relevant to their livelihood,” he says.
Elsewhere in the region, some countries do have to put in more work. Singapore is seen as one of Asia’s main communications hubs. With a strong terrestrial infrastructure and its main telco, SingTel, involved in the space industry, the country wants to be at the center of bringing new talent to the industry in Asia. Jonathan Hung, president, Singapore Space and Technology Association (SSTA), says first impressions count when trying to attract future talent. “For school kids, we try and show them new breakthroughs in aerospace/space and sciences in general. It really is constant exposure to new, innovative concepts to keep them fired up. It is also essential to get them interested in science at a young age. … We have to show them that the space industry has exciting opportunities. The recent economic crisis impacted many sectors, and space was similarly affected. Although the space industry might have longer gestation periods than other mainstream sectors, it is based on very strategic and real needs. It is a resilient sector, not one that will come and go overnight. This is a key message we want to leave with this generation’s youth,” he says.
The SSTA has stepped up its education activities in recent years. “Over the last three years, we have been conducting the Singapore Space Challenge. This is an engineering/design competition. The aim of the competition is to deepen students’ knowledge in terms of space concepts and engineering. It is a full nine months long program codevelopedco-developed with industry partners and government agencies. The participating students range from 16 years old all the way to university,” says Hung. Like CNES, SSTA is looking for a more progressive Internet strategy, as it looks to interact better with young people. “We do acknowledge that the online platforms publicly available are not fully leveraged on by the association,” says Hung. “However, in terms of public outreach, the SSTA is making a two-part, 1 hour space documentary showcasing Singapore’s journey into space. The goal is for this to air on local and regional channels, reaching to the masses. Moving forward, our PR and marketing efforts will definitely leverage on new media, such as Facebook, Twitter and the like. SSTA’s public outreach team has got to keep up with information technology. At the end of this year, we hope to revamp our Web site to allow greater interactivity.”
In the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is increasing its focus on bringing through young talent to the space industry. The Emirates Institution for Advanced Science & Technology (EIAST), is working hard to engage students of all ages and bring them to the space industry. Ahmed Al Mansoori, director general, EIAST, says there is a good platform for young people to come into the space industry. “We have a culture to try and promote science and research. We want to encourage talent. We see this as not only adding value in the country but providing a platform for people to show more innovation. There are many universities and colleges in the UAE and youngsters are very enthusiastic about getting involved in science. We think there are many students who want to get involved in engineering, but not just space engineering. We are also going to schools to try and focus awareness on these issues. In the universities and colleges in this region, there is a lot of focus on engineering,” he says.
The DubaiSat program, where students are helping build an actual satellite, is a source of great pride as well as potential inspiration to students at the school level. “We are working with the schools in terms of providing information on what we do as well as projects like DubaiSat. So we make sure we show that as part of the curriculum. We want to encourage youngsters about the importance of these projects and the good they do for the country. We have a number of awareness programs. We also encourage schools to come and see what we are doing. When they come to the facility, not only can they see satellites, but also some of the processes involved in building the satellites, but we want to have more programs with schools,” Al Mansoori says.
Al Mansoori is hopeful that EIAST can continue its pioneering work with the DubaiSat program and bring through the next wave of young engineering talent in the United Arab Emirates. “We need to work on a personal and cultural level so they can see the future. We want people to see the value of what EIAST is doing. One of the other main challenges we have is to expand the range of international partners we have. One important thing to consider is if you work in the space industry, you should not think of one community or one industry, you need to think about it in a wider context. We want to encourage young people to think beyond the box. A lot of things in space can be done to benefit humanity. We have the platform in the Middle East to make advances in these technologies. We have a duty to communicate this to young people and show them what we have something to offer, so they can be part of it,” he says.
Listen to more questions from Jason Bates' interview with Jim Stofan acting associate administrator for education, NASA Headquarters.
Throughout the world, space agencies and associations are aiming to think outside of the box to attract young people to the space industry. This battle to engage these minds starts long before college, and it is one of the key battles the industry as a whole industry faces. As we head into a multi-layered digital and communications world, showing young people how satellite technologies underpin areas as diverse as climate change, broadcasting, military operations is a massive, and important, challenge.
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