Our Mission
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The SSPF was created for two reasons. Firstly, to serve the immediate need for an organisation to manage all local financial aspects of the International Space University’s (ISU) 2018 Space Studies Program (SSP) in the Netherlands.
After the completion of SSP18, the SSPF will focus entirely on providing financial support in the longer term to ‘NL-connected’ participants for SSP and other short duration education programmes. |
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At the time of the existence of the Netherlands Agency for Aerospace Programmes (NIVR), there was a so-called NIVR-fund for the financial support of SSP participants, but this fund was discontinued when the NIVR was disbanded. Since then, it has been difficult and only occasionally possible for interested parties in the Netherlands to obtain financial support for participation in this education programme. The SSPF aims to again provide a structural solution for those interested in participating in SSP and other short duration space studies.
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Participation in SSP is not only important for the professional and personal development of the participants, but also connects them to the global alumni network of more than 4.800 space professionals, many of whom occupy key positions in institutional and private space organisations, in over a hundred countries. Combined with the international ISU network, SSP alumni form an effective community of space professionals and leaders who initiate and facilitate international business development, collaboration, professional activities and career opportunities.
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The Netherlands Space Office (NSO), the space agency of the Dutch government (working as a partnership between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management and the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO)), therefore also wholeheartedly supports SSP, according to the initiative taken by NSO to organise SSP18 in the Netherlands and also to establish SSPF.
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In this way SSP contributes to the further positioning, profiling and growth of the Dutch space sector.
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International Space University
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Memorandum of Understanding
In December 2020, ISU and SSPF signed a non-exclusive Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the aim to guarantee and consolidate a stable base for NL-connected participants of ISU programs. The MoU confirms their commitment to cooperation and underlines their common interest in educating young professionals in the space sector through high-quality intercultural, interdisciplinary, and international education in space-related activities. Under the MoU, SSPF agrees to undertake dedicated actions encouraging NL-connected participants to join ISU programs, whereas ISU agrees to systematically inform NL-connected applicants about the possibilities for financial support offered by SSPF. The Agreement formalises the organisational and financial interactions and provides that an annual meeting will be held to exchange information on respective activities and to review the state of implementation of the Agreement. SSPF looks forward to a fruitful and productive cooperation with ISU under this Agreement. |
Click below to visit the International Space University’s website,
where you can learn more about the programs on offer.
where you can learn more about the programs on offer.
Image credits: ESA and ISU
