Space Euros presented to top donors
Dutch Space, Sapienza, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, Pcubed and OHB Systems are the new and proud owners of 3 sets of European banknotes and 2 sets of Euro coins, which flew to the International Space Station in October 2002. ESA's Director of Human Spaceflight, Jörg Feustel-Büechl and ESA astronaut Frank De Winne awarded the sets to these five organisations for their contributions to the ISS Education Fund.
As the three top donors Dutch Space, Sapienza and Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide received a complete set of seven Euro banknotes. Two of the rare sets of Euro coins from the Vatican State and the Principality of Monaco, were handed over to representatives from Pcubed and OHB Systems. This was the outcome of ESA's Euro from Space Initiative, which invited organisations to make donations to the ISS Education Fund by bidding for these European banknotes and coins.
The money had been taken to the International Space Station and back by Frank De Winne during the Odissea Mission of October 2002, the banknotes were personally signed by him on the International Space Station and carry the official Odissea Mission stamp. The banknotes and coins had themselves been kindly donated by the European Central Bank (ECB) and carry the handwritten signature of Willem F. Duisenberg, the former ECB President.
The five organisations, which made their generous donations, now join Contraves Space and HE Space Operations as funding members of the ISS Education Fund.
The ISS Education Fund
The money raised through the Euro From Space Initiative provides further support to the ISS Education Fund. The Fund has been set up by ESA to create a mechanism by which external organisation can support the work of the ISS Education Programme.
The ISS Education Programme aims to encourage students from the 15 ESA Member States to study, understand, and support science and technology in the future by using the resources of space as a way to stimulate and capture their interest.
The Fund supports the production and dissemination of a range of educational material, in 11 languages, for primary and secondary level students, and encourages university level students to propose and develop experiments to fly in space.
ESA actively encourages and welcomes support from external organisations to the ISS Education Fund. If you would like to be involved, visit our website: www.esa.int/issef, and see how you can make a difference.
