IVLP participants from Singapore take a group photo during a visit to the Smithsonian’s Udvar Hazy Air and Space Museum in October 2023. Photo credit: Nazgul Toktosunova.
By Kailyn Manseau and Ava D’Sa
Through collaboration, cooperation, and diplomacy, the United States and our space partners are advancing science, addressing global societal challenges, and exploring and using space to benefit all humankind. This year, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs has implemented three International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) initiatives to enhance peaceful space cooperation and foster lasting connections between Americans and space professionals around the world. By working together, we discover more and go farther.
In March 2022, the Republic of Singapore signed the Artemis Accords, a multilateral, non-binding declaration of principles led by the U.S. Department of State and NASA that promote values-based cooperation and encourage responsible and safe behavior in space. Building on this bilateral cooperation and coinciding with the third anniversary of the Artemis Accords, the State Department recently welcomed representatives of Singapore’s new space agency, the Office of Space Technology and Investment, for an IVLP on effective government efforts to grow the commercial space industry. From Washington, D.C. to Los Angeles, CA, participants met with U.S. civil space researchers, policymakers, and business leaders to discuss best practices and collaborate on advancing space goals.
IVLP participants from 14 countries receive a mission briefing from Space Operations Command (SpOC) at SpOC Headquarters, Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado on April 14, 2023. Photo Credit: SSgt Jose A. Rodriguez Jr.
Space professionals from 14 countries arrived in the United States in April for an IVLP to examine best practices for the development of a national space infrastructure. Through this program, the participants visited Washington, D.C., Colorado Springs, CO; Denver, CO; Los Angeles, CA; and Cocoa Beach, FL to meet with their American counterparts on a wide variety of topics, such as U.S. space policy, space exploration, and innovations in space science and technology.
The following month, ECA welcomed eight professionals from Oman for an IVLP that examined policies, partnerships, and strategies to build capacity for the space sector to serve as an engine of economic growth. Through engagements in Washington, D.C.; Orlando, FL; Huntsville, AL; and Denver, CO; the participants discovered the diversity of American culture and society and explored potential collaborations with American space tech companies.
IVLP participants from Oman meet with Space Florida in May 2023. Space Florida is an independent special district created to foster the growth and development of the aerospace industry in the state of Florida. Photo Credit: Heather van Dyk, WorldOrlando.
People-to-people professional exchange programs help strengthen U.S. engagement with countries around the world, even in the field of international space cooperation. Next year, ECA plans to implement an additional IVLP that will explore approaches to strategic planning and policy making for cooperative space projects.
The implementing partners for the 2023 space diplomacy IVLP exchanges were American Councils for International Education, Colorado Springs World Affairs Council, Global Ties Alabama, International Citizen Diplomacy of Los Angeles, Meridian International Center, WorldDenver, and WorldOrlando.
