SGAC unites world’s young space professionals
The Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) is a global non-profit organization and network for university students and young professionals aged 18-35 in the space industry.
With headquarters in Vienna, SGAC has over 30.000 members in 165 countries around the world. Through various local, regional and global initiatives, SGAC provides opportunities for networking, knowledge-sharing, and career development, ensuring that the next generation of space leaders is well-equipped to drive the industry forward. Additionally, SGAC plays a crucial role in amplifying the voices of young professionals at the United Nations, space agencies, and other key international organizations, advocating for their perspectives on the future of space activities.
SG[Nordic-Baltic] 2025 marked a significant milestone as the first SGAC event of this scale in the Nordic-Baltic region. Held on January 20, 2025, in Espoo, Finland, the event gathered 90 attendants, including students, young professionals and industry experts, to explore the theme 'Starting Up Together'. Organized in conjunction with the Winter Satellite Workshop 2025 – the largest space event in the Nordics and Baltics – the event focused on fostering collaboration and innovation in the space sector. Attendees engaged in keynote speeches, panel discussion and interactive hackathons, gaining insights from industry leaders and building connections that will help shape the future of space activities in the region.
The wintery Monday started in an exciting atmosphere when a large group of energetic young people from all over the world gathered at the Aalto Design Factory in Otaniemi, Espoo. Even before the first speech began, international research cooperation, student exchanges to interesting universities (and praise for everyone’s own fine university), space research and the wonderful world of physics were discussed in the corridors. The seminar featured two success stories of the space industry, both of which sparked an enthusiastic avalanche of questions and discussion in the audience, as did also the European Space Agency's speech.
The topic of the panel discussion was Innovation, Talent, and Growth in Nordic-Baltic Space. Here, too, the active audience did not let the panelists off the hook, but asked questions, offered new ideas, and challenged them a little. The morning's conclusion can be summed up in a thought: follow your dream, dare to make it come true, and don't let small setbacks discourage you, in the end, success will reward hard work.
After lunch, the team was divided into hackathon groups, where new space product and service concepts were brainstormed for a couple of hours. The ideas were then pitched to the entire audience at the end of the day. After the group photo, the chattering and happy crowd headed to the pizza buffet to continue the lively conversation and get to know new people. After today's experience, we can confidently say that the future of space activities is in good hands – 'the future is in the youth'!
Further information
Tiina Nurmi
Chief Advisor, International Collaboration
Finnish Delegate to ESA Industrial Policy Committee
Business Finland
tiina.nurmi (at) businessfinland.fi
Kiira Tiensuu
National Point of Contact Finland
SGAC
kiira.tiensuu (at) spacegeneration.org
Photo: SGAC
