Space for our Planet at the United Nations in New York
The exhibition ‘Space for our Planet’ was recently inaugurated at the Visitors Centre of United Nations in New York and it will be on display until 21 November. A travelling display that is moving around the world to showcase how space technology and its applications benefit life on Earth and all humankind.
After a year-long journey across Europe, Space for our Planet: Space Solutions for a Sustainable World moved overseas. The touring exhibition was inaugurated at the Visitors Centre of United Nations in New York on 4 October. The exhibit will be on display at the United Nations Headquarters until 21 November. The display will be a unique opportunity to raise awareness on the importance of space technologies and their applications to the improvement of human condition on Earth, not only towards visitors but also members of all United Nations delegations.
The arrival of the Space for Our Planet exhibit at the UN visitors Centre in New York fell in the UN World Space Week (celebrated from 4 to 10 October), the largest annual space event in the world to mark the contribution of space science and technology to the betterment of human life. This year the UN World Space Week was dedicated to the theme of Space and Sustainability.
In this framework, two events worthy of note will take place at the UN Visitors Centre in New York. On 26 October from 18:00 to 20:00 (EDT), in the Sputnik Area there will be ‘Space4ourPlanet’, an end-of-day ceremony dedicated to all partners of the exhibition. Supported by the Group of Friends of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), this event aims at raising awareness on the importance of space technologies to achieve the objectives and targets enshrined in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Another noteworthy appointment will be ‘Space for sustainable development on Earth’. The event will take place on October 27 from 13:00 to 14:00 (EDT) at UNHQ. A panel discussion during which founding partners of the exhibition will have the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas. In the run-up to the SDG Summit 2023, the aim of the panel will be also stressing the benefits of space technologies in the Summit proceedings and the crucial importance of international cooperation in outer space for the benefit of all.
About the Space for Our Planet Exhibition
Climate experts, oceanographers, artists, doctors, astronauts, and more: the display is made up of 35 portraits of testimonials from all over the world and from different fields. Through audio interviews, images and text, thirty-five 'agents of change' shared their experiences on how space is providing a specific solution to achieve the 17 United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
ESA is a founding partner and has contributed to Space for our Planet with concrete examples of how data from Earth observation, telecommunications, navigation satellites and integrated applications – as well as knowledge gained through International Space Station research – support SDGs: eradicating poverty, improving human health, contributing to industry and innovation, promoting responsible consumption and fostering world peace. In 2018, ESA became the first space agency to have a catalogue of space projects supporting the SDGs. Anybody can browse the catalogue; it provides examples of how space is already supporting the SDGs, creating visibility for the added value of space data, applications, and technologies for tackling the global challenges we are facing today.
The exhibition is produced by TIMKAT, curated by Fiorella Coliolo, Astronomer, and Benoit Delplanque (TIMKAT), under the patronage of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA). Founding partners of the exhibition are the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Commission (Directorate General for Industry, Defence and Space – DG DEFIS). Partners include the Centre national d’études spatiales (CNES), the Italian Space Agency (ASI), the German Space Agency (DLR), Portugal Space, the network of European space regions (NEREUS), the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the Canadian association GIVE (Global Initiative & Vision for Education).
So far, the exhibit has been displayed in Paris, Brussels, Dubai, Toulouse, Bonn, Berlin, Trento and Rome. Next stops will be the harbour of Barcelona in November 2022 and Lisbon in 2023.
