A student view of IAC 2021: 5 Days in Dubai (2)

The IAC (International Astronautical Congress) 2021 is on the mind of a lot of people in the Space Community right now. But how does a student experience IAC in Dubai? Bram De Winter is in Dubai right now and blogging for NL Space Campus in a 5-day Series. 

This is the second of 5 stories about IAC2021 in Dubai from a student’s viewpoint. Bram is a graduate student geology and geochemistry at VU Amsterdam and Space Exploration Projectgroup Co-Lead & national contact for the Netherlands SGAC (Space Generation Advisory Council). He is part of the NL Space Campus Student Working group. 

Day 2: Tuesday 26-10-2021 

Hi everyone,

Day 2 of the International Astronautical Conference (IAC) 2021 in Dubai from a student view. This day has been marked in my agenda for a long time: I am presenting my individual paper about how uncertainties affect the relationship between engineers and scientists in the space sector. After giving a 1-minute lightning talk in the morning, to advertise an interactive presentation later this week, I went to my presentation session. Supported by fellow SGAC members, I gave my 10-minute oral talk. This also marked the end of a project that started way back in December 2020, concerning preparing all requirements for this congress and doing the research on this topic. Doing so by writing an abstract, followed by a manuscript, a taped video lecture and a prepared presentation. I received very good reactions from attendees, and I was able to talk about everything that I wanted to address. A dream of mine is to be a valuable part of the science community and so I am very pleased with the way the presentation went. It was an experience to never forget. 

Surrounding all these activities, the day was focused on networking and discussing collaboration with other SGAC staff members and fellow project group co-leads. This conference is the only time that have almost all space community members in the same place, and I believe you must make the most of discussing collaboration as much as possible. It is really important to learn from others as well as improving career opportunities by creating a network for your future career. While exhibition, plenary sessions and more are interesting, meeting your fellow space community members is what IAC is all about. For me networking is to connect with fellow young professionals and experts to further extend my network.

Greetings from Dubai,

Bram de Winter