What We Do

SGAC works on the international, national and local level to link together university students and young professionals to think creatively about international space policy issues and inject the youth point of view into international space policy creation.

For a quick overview on what SGAC does, please see our current SGAC brochure available here.

SGAC Network
Our network is our strongest asset. SGAC has thousands of members in over 100 countries around the world. Through our projects, discussion fora and information dissemination resources, we aim to be the premier linking organisation of young space professionals and students. We provide an environment for growth and engagement for our members around the world to gain skills that can prove essential to their future careers. In effect, SGAC is in part a “sandbox” for the future space workforce.

Work with the UN – Voice of the Youth
Having been created in the United Nations environment (UNISPACE III), our work with the UN, particularly the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN COPUOS), is of central importance to our mission. SGAC works to give regular input to the work of the Committee and its delegates and to act as a conduit for the opinions of our members and the outcomes of our projects. We take part in a variety of UN Action Teams and Working Groups on space issues, as well as the UN Programme on Space Applications. No other youth space organisation has a Permanent Observer status with COPUOS and is as active or as engaged in the work of the UN as SGAC – a fact of which we are very proud. In addition to having Permanent Observer status within COPUOS since 2001, SGAC also has had consultative status within the United Nations Economic and Social Council since 2003.

SGAC Projects
At SGAC, one of our key contributions to the space policy debate is the output of the projects which SGAC undertakes year-round. Our projects range from the SGAC Group on Space Technologies for Disaster Management, an outreach group for space applications for disaster management, to our YGNSS project, a group promoting cooperation and education in global navigation satellite systems. We work with both our members to generate new ideas for projects and sponsors who are interested in getting the view point of the next generation of space leaders. Please click here for the Current Projects Page.

If you are an SGAC member and would like to get involved with current projects, please contact a project leader and get involved today!

If you are interested in contacting SGAC to discuss working with SGAC as a sponsor on a specific project idea, please click here.

Conferences
Every year SGAC holds events and conferences to bring together members of the SGAC community to interact. The Space Generation Congress (SGC) is our primary conference, and it annually brings together top young minds from around the world to focus on key space topics. The Congress takes place in conjunction with the International Astronautical Congress (IAC).

The aim of the SGC is two–fold. First, to strengthen the international network of the Space Generation Advisory Council. From the perspective of the individual delegates, many of whom come from developing countries, it is a chance to interact and engage with the incoming generation of space professionals from all over the world. From the perspective of the Space Generation Advisory Council, it allows us to consolidate our international links in order to best represent and facilitate the voice of the next space generation. The second purpose is to have the new generation of space leaders examine and consider key questions that are facing the space. These results are then shared with the UN, various agencies, industry and academia.

In addition, to our own annual conference, SGAC staff and members, attend UN and other key space conferences around the world in order to offer unique youth perspectives on key space-related issues .

Sponsorships and Scholarships
In our quest to increase youth input and engagement on international space issues, we work to provide the financial resources for our members. As our membership is globally diverse, one of our key goals is to allow our members to take part in the international space policy creation process from attendance and presentations at UN COPUOS to participating in our annual congress, the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) or issue-specific seminars around the world.

Fora
Our fora are one our strongest methods of communication. Through online fora on both general and project topics, our members can discuss input to SGAC projects or general space policy related issues. Our members are our biggest strength, and through our fora, we do our best to make sure they have an easy-to-use flexible environment where they can engage with one another on key topics.