EUROAVIA - AN EXAMPLE OF INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION TO PREPARE THE GLOBAL SPACE WORKFORCE OF TOMORROW

摘要

EUROAVIA - European Association of Aerospace Students - is a Europe based non-profit organisation for international students and young professionals interested in space and aeronautics to support and enhance both their professional and personal development. Established in 1959, two years after the Treaties of Rome that paved the way for economic cooperation in Europe, EUROAVIA connects nowadays more than 2000 members in 40 different cities of 19 European countries. Its goal is to stimulate cooperation between the industry, the institutions and the academia in aerospace research and technology and its applications, preparing the members' association to become the skilled and knowledgeable space workforce of tomorrow. On March 16, 2014, EUROAVIA celebrates an outstanding milestone in its history: the XI Lustrum. For 55 years, hundreds of aerospace passionate members have been gathering to witness, understand and experience the long-term outcome that those treaties would have had on all European countries. All this while promoting the grounding idea of cooperation as a matter of education to prepare students for this purpose. The XI Lustrum also renews EUROAVIA commitment to develop the current and future global space workforce by fostering the EUROAVIA spirit, a set of common values based upon hard work, innovation, cultural awareness, teamwork and international networking. Preserving these values, building a global culture mindset and a cross-functional cooperation are the next challenges to meet. While preparing the technical workforce to collaborate successfully on joint space projects, a particular attention to the intercultural management issues has to be paid. In this context, the paper discusses opportunities and innovative approaches to embrace the aforementioned challenges. Moreover, a special focus is put on our core activities that bring aerospace students and young professional leaders together with world key space actors, including ESA, CNES, DLR, Arianespace and Airbus Space Defence. Such activities count annual congresses, technical symposia, training sessions and design workshops such as the "Preliminary Design of an UAV for Exploration of Mars" hosted by EUROAVIA and ESA Estec. In conclusion, the importance of enhancing existing synergies with the world of industry and institutions along with creating new partnerships is highlighted as key factor to prepare the future space workforce. The foundation of the last two EUROAVIA branches in Toulouse and Kourou, within the Guiana Space Centre, proves our added value to members' education and careers development in space.