The SGAC election of a new Co-Chairperson in 2024 has been completed and we are pleased to welcome Joshua Critchley-Marrows (Australia) as the new Co-Chair of SGAC.
Election Report
After an extensive period of discussion and interaction between the candidates and the Executive Committee, all eligible Regional Coordinators cast their votes. One Regional Coordinator was deemed ineligible to vote due to a conflict of interest as per our Statutes and Bylaws.
Out of all 11 votes, candidates received:
- Abraham Akinwale (Nigeria) – 0%
- Ahmed Abdi (Somalia) – 0%
- Ahmed Baraka (Egypt) – 0%
- Joshua Critchley-Marrows (Australia) – 54.5%
- Marcos Eduardo Rojas Ramirez (Mexico) – 9.1%
- Matej Poliacek (Slovakia) – 0%
- Rania Toukebri (Tunisia) – 36.4%
We are happy to announce that Joshua Critchley-Marrows will be the new Co-Chair of the Space Generation Advisory Council! He will be working alongside the Chair, Dr Antonino Salmeri (Italy).
About Joshua Critchley-Marrows
Joshua Critchley-Marrows is an aerospace engineer with expertise in space-based Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) systems and resilience. He completed his PhD at the University of Sydney, in collaboration with Texas A&M University and the University of Tokyo, on celestial-derived alternative PNT infrastructure for terrestrial and space-based applications.
Joshua is a former Senior Navigation Engineer at GMV in the UK, where he served as project and technical lead of activities across UK, Europe and Australia, including smartphone high accuracy services and satellite mission development for PNT applications in LEO and Lunar space. He has also contributed to resilient PNT policy-making research in both Japan and Australia through FrontierSI. He now works at ArkEdge Space in Tokyo, Japan.
When informed of the results, Joshua had this to say:
“I am beyond expression in receiving the results of this year’s SGAC election, where I was a candidate alongside some of the very best and brightest of our wonderful community and industry. When I first joined SGAC in 2018, I had no comprehension that I would be standing where I do today. I have very big shoes to fill, with a great precedent set by the joint leadership of outgoing Chair Hamza Hameed and new Chair Antonino Salmeri, two outstanding individuals. My vision for SGAC is to broaden our reach, where I will be based in the Asia-Pacific and Japan, and to provide new opportunity for our very large membership of nearing 30,000. I look forward to working alongside an inspirational team to delivering new heights for the organisation.”
Hamza Hameed, Former Chair and Election Officer mentioned:
“I extend my heartiest congratulations to Joshua on his election as SGAC Co-Chair! Joshua has been an important pillar of SGAC for more than six years, most recently serving as the Co-Lead for SGAC’s Project Groups. He has continuously demonstrated excellent leadership skills and has repeatedly proven himself to be a compassionate and kind person. These traits are essential for the role of Co-Chair of SGAC.. I am confident that SGAC is in great hands and that Joshua will help lead our beloved organisation to new heights!”
Antonino Salmeri, the current Chair, had this to say:
“I am truly delighted to welcome Joshua as the new Co-Chair of SGAC. Year after year I’ve been witnessing his growth within our organisation and I am excited to be working with him for the next year. I could have not asked for a better companion as I take over the responsibility of Chair from my dear friend Hamza, to whom goes all my gratitude for his excellent service to SGAC over the past two years.”
Nikol Koleva, current Executive Director, added:
“I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to Joshua on his election as SGAC Co-Chair! It has been a pleasure working with Joshua thus far, and I eagerly anticipate our continued collaboration. I am confident that SGAC will reach new milestones and achievements with his guidance and experience.”
