A record-breaking number of more than 300 participants from over 55 countries gathered at the United Nations/Germany High Level Forum (HLF) on the way forward after UNISPACE+50 and on Space2030.
The HLF, which took place from 13 to 16 November 2018 in Bonn, Germany, was organized by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), and co-sponsored by the European Space Agency (ESA) and supported by the International Committee for Global Navigation Satellite Systems (ICG) and the Secure World Foundation.
The Forum was divided into two parts: technical sessions on the UNISPACE+50 thematic priorities on 13 and 14 November, and high-level panels on 15 and 16 November. The technical sessions addressed the UNISPACE+50 outcomes and the way ahead on the implementation of the UNISPACE+50 thematic priorities. Building on the results of the thematic priorities sessions, the high-level panels discussed the way ahead after UNISPACE+50, focusing on the four pillars of Space2030: space economy, space society, space accessibility, and space diplomacy.
At the HLF, UNOOSA Director Simonetta Di Pippo announced the “Access to Space for All Initiative”, which will bring together the many diverse efforts by UNOOSA to enable communities from all over the world, and especially non-space faring and emerging space faring nations, to use and benefit from space technologies and applications.
Simonetta Di Pippo, Director of UNOOSA, commented: “We are witnessing an ever-growing space sector, with an increasing number of governmental and private actors. New space applications and services are developed and released almost every day. Building on the success of UNISPACE+50, the High Level Forum 2018 provided a platform to ensure that the benefits of recent advancements in the outer space arena reach everyone, everywhere, as well as to discuss measures to preserve space for future generations. The Access to Space for All Initiative is addressing exactly this, representing a new way for UNOOSA to be a capacity builder in the 21st century in an innovative manner, so that no one is left behind.”
Professor Pascale Ehrenfreund, Chairman of the Executive Board of DLR, said: “Shaping the Space 2030 Agenda is of utmost importance to enable best and most effective use of space technologies and applications for sustainable development. Science, technology and innovation are key components. We need to link science and technology more closely to development cooperation and the private sector, and thus better integrate space activities into national development planning.”
The full set of recommendations and observations from the Forum will be made available through the HLF session page as soon as ready.
During the event, it was announced that the HLF 2019 will take place in Austria.
