The new frontiers of the Space Economy and the role of Italy

Milano, 17 May 2019
During the second week of May, Washigton DC hosted the annual “2019 Satellite” exposition. This global show gave the opportunity to the International space community to present their business operations and strategies.

This context was also the occasion to present the new Italian space scenario at a conference “The Italian Space Governance” organized at the Embassy of Italy on May 8^th. The event was preceded by a dinner hosted by S.E. Ambassador, Armando Varricchio, at Villa Firenze. The dinner was attended by Simonetta Di Pippo, Director of the the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and by top ranking officials in the US administration, including Scott Pace, Executive Secretary of the National Space Council, General John F. Raymond, Commander of the Air Force Space Command, Jonathan Margolis, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Science, Space and Health, Fred Kennedy, Director of the Space Development Agency, representatives of NASA and of different US Departments and Agencies. CEOs of italian aerospace companies, as well the Director and members of Space Economy Evolution (SEE) Lab, SDA Bocconi, were present at the dinner.

The conference was opened by the Italian Ambassador to the United States who undelined  the importance and the role of the Italian  space sector in the international arena and hilighted the multilateral and bilateral collaborations between Italy and the US, which have been enriched in recent years with private sector projets of exellence.  He also  stressed the importance of academic collaboration between Italian and American academic and research institutions, stating:

"From an academic point of view, the Space Economy Evolution Lab of the Bocconi University School of Management and the Space Policy Institute of the George Washington University also signed a partnership agreement creating new opportunities to cooperate in the aerospace sector."

After the Ambassador’s introduction, the new  President of Italian Space Agency (ASI), Giorgio Saccoccia, presented the new Italian space governance  and its operational programmes. He also emphasized the growing role of private companies in the development of space exploration and research activites,  and the need of collaboration with public institutions. As the US and NASA have announced their intention to return to the Moon in a few years, Italy and the ASI, together with the European Space Agency (ESA), have confirmed that they want to be close to their historical partner in this new adventure with all the scientific and technological experiences accumulated profitably and successfully in fifty years of partnership.

SDa Bocconi School of Management