Nebula Award – SGx 2026 

Thanks to the generous donation of a SGAC Alumnus, SGAC will bring 2 (two) students or young professionals who can bring unique and insightful firsthand perspectives to our very own SGx and ASCEND, both held in Washington D.C., USA.

SGx is a fast-paced, content-rich conference modeled on the TEDx “lightning talk” format, creating an environment where young professionals, industry experts, and government executives gather to network, share insights, and inspire each other.

Application Deadline: 21 of April 2026 23:59 MST (UTC-4)

Award

The award will support 2 top applicants with $3,000 USD each, to attend the following events in Washington D.C., USA:

• SGx: 17 – 18 May, 2026
• ASCEND: 19 – 21 May, 2026

The $3,000 USD award will be provided as total or partial reimbursement to cover:

• Round trip travel costs to Washington D.C., a via economy airfare
• Lodging at a hotel or equivalent
• Visa costs (if any)
• SGx registration fee
• ASCEND registration fee

How to apply?

Be aware! Previous recipients of the Space Generation Leadership Award (SGLA), the Global Grant Programme (GGP), and/or Nebula Award to attend SGC and IAC, and/or SGFF and Space Symposium are not eligible to apply. 

Through our Scholarships Submission Form at the bottom of the page (Please make sure to be logged in on the website to see the form), upload two separate videos answering the questions below. The maximum length of each video is 1 minute (any content over this time will not be considered as part of the answer). 

Video 1: Describe your past contributions to SGAC and the space sector.

Video 2: Why should you be selected for the 2026 SGx Nebula Award?

Please submit your videos as a YouTube link. Locked or unavailable videos will not be considered. 

Your submission should follow the competition guidelines below.

Requirements

• SGAC Membership (free registration on the SGAC website required, and aged 18-35 years old during the period of performance)

• The scholarship is open to all students and young professionals from any country

• The award is intended to recognise SGAC volunteers—current or past—who have made outstanding and sustained contributions to the organisation.

• Priority will be given to applicants who have not previously attended a SGx, SGFF and/or SGC

• Good communication skills and fluency in English

• Interest in working with international cultures and diverse backgrounds

• Winners should not receive support from any other source to the event. Should the winners receive such support midway through the program, SGAC should be informed and a solution will be sought

• Past winners of the Space Generation Leadership Award (Global and Regional) or the Global Grants Programme are ineligible for this award.

In the interest of spreading opportunities to more members, SGAC reserves the right to prioritise applicants who have not recently received another SGAC scholarship of a similar nature. “Recently” is defined as having received a travel grant in the past 2 years, in the same category (either international or regional/national) as this posted award. International awards include scholarships for international events such as SGC/IAC, SGFF and Space Symposium, while regional/national awards refer to events, such as the Space Generation Workshops (SGW), national space generation events (SG[country]) or other regional or national conferences.

Responsibilities

Be aware! This scholarship is meant to mainly support attendants to the SGx. Paper presentations, or any other commitments for ASCEND are not a requirement.  

Winner responsibilities:

• Attend the entire SGx

• Support the running of SGx if required

• Contribute to the SGx final report

• Submit a short video (1 min) and 1-page report (excluding pictures) describing their experience at the 23rd Space Generation Congress for inclusion on the SGAC website, newsletter or social media and that of our partners. Example of content: speakers that were particularly interesting, group discussions that stood out or other event highlights.

Reimbursement

1. The award will be paid out after the events take place and upon fulfillment of all requirements in a suitable manner, as determined by the scholarship coordinators, including any report submissions and submissions of expense claims. The awards will be paid out no later than 30 days after fulfillment of all responsibilities.
2. If applicants receive funding for the events from any other organization, the scholarship coordinators must be informed. If applicants do not inform the scholarship coordinators, SGAC reserves the right to refuse reimbursement to the applicants if they become winners. SGAC aims to reduce the number of double scholarships and will work with the winners to develop a solution in these cases.
3. Applicants are advised not to incur any expenses until they have formal confirmation that the grant has been awarded. SGAC is not liable for any expenses incurred by applicants in any case where a competition is not awarded, or in excess of the value of the awarded grant.

Liability

• Organisers shall not be responsible in the event that SGx 2026 and/or ASCEND 2026 is cancelled. 

• Organisers shall not be responsible in the event that the award winner fails to attend SGx 2026 and/or ASCEND 2026 or is unable to under extenuating circumstances; in such a case the award offer shall become void.

• Organisers shall not be responsible in the event that the award winner cannot obtain any necessary travel documents (visas etc). If such required documents are not obtained prior to planned travel, the award shall become void.

• The award is non-transferable and not valid for another event or individual.

• Following the Reimbursement Guidelines, in the event that event or travel cannot take place due to unforeseeable circumstances (force majeure), including but not limited to illness, death, or weather, the Scholarship Holder will be responsible to try to recover costs through any available travel insurance or trip cancellation insurance. SGAC may reimburse the remaining amount not covered by insurance.

Schedule

Contact

For any questions, please refer to SGAC Scholarships Team ([email protected]).