For Immediate Release:
21 July 2021
Media Contact: Erika Hecht info@newspacenexus.org
More than 250 space leaders convened to discuss recommendations to strengthen the Space industrial
base
Albuquerque, New Mexico. In a first-of-a-kind, hybrid, co-innovation workshop, NewSpace Nexus hosted the 2021 State of the Space Industrial Base on July 14-16. The event brought together more than 250 thought-leaders from industry, government, and academia to discuss solutions to strengthen and expand the U.S. space industrial base to ensure U.S. space leadership.
Key participants included the U.S. Space Force, Defense Innovation Unit, Air Force 
Research Laboratory, and space industry leaders from across the nation. They shared their industry outlooks, insights, and challenges in working groups focused on addressing needs across logistics, operations, information services, the supply chain, and space policy.
“The state of the space industrial base is tactically strong but strategically fragile,” said Col Eric Felt, Director, U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate. “There were many critical opportunities highlighted this past week for government and industry to work together to strengthen our burgeoning space sector.”
Some of these actions include: developing a national space vision, building an inclusive cislunar economy, setting and leading in key standards, leveraging existing commercial satellite capabilities for a hybrid Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) space internet, building the space superhighway, and applying space solutions to Presidential and Secretary of Defense priorities regarding climate change.
“This year’s early demonstration of a hybrid conference was exciting to experience and lead as it enabled us to bring together the nations’ best minds both in-person and virtually to problem-solve, advance progress, and develop solutions that meet national security needs. The format was enhanced over last year’s successful, fully virtual event that shaped the national conversation on accelerating and strengthening the new space innovation base,” said Casey DeRaad, CEO of NewSpace Nexus.
Critical actions, recommendations, and learnings outlined from the working group sessions will be summarized in a report that will be released in early September. More information on the agenda and other reference information can be found at: NewSpaceNM.org