Justyna Redelkiewicz is the CEO & Founder of GoCosmic!, an advisory firm focused on commercialising deep tech innovations. A former EU official and seasoned business developer, she brings over 20 years of experience across IT, deep tech, and satellite technologies. Justyna has supported hundreds of startups in harnessing space-based technologies to disrupt industries and drive scalable growth. Recognised as a Strong Woman in IT, she led the EU’s flagship €1 billion Cassini initiative at the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), empowering entrepreneurship in the space sector. As a market innovator in downstream space technologies, she partnered with leading European corporations to advance innovation through satellite data and business intelligence. She also serves on the Space Executive Committee of the European Business Angel Network. Prior to joining EUSPA and founding her own start-up, she held business development roles at Toshiba, Nestlé, and Comarch. A passionate advocate for personal growth, Justyna studied at Columbia Business School, HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management, and Poznań University of Economics, and is a visiting lecturer at the International Space University.

Pieter van Beekhuizen has worked his whole professional life in the space domain, first with ESRO and later with ESA. During this period, he has occupied a large variety of different staff functions and line management responsibilities within ESA. His last assignment was Head of ESA Industrial Cost Auditing and Return Division which has included industrial costs audits, and the provision of the industrial geo return data to ESA Member States. In this capacity he was involved in multiple program reviews and chaired various Management and Cost panels for large ESA program procurements. During the last years at ESA, he was also involved in the European initiatives for space commercialization opportunities/projects. Following his retirement from ESA he started a consultancy company (Bexperience) providing consultancy and support services for various clients in different countries and continents. He is Board member of SSPF (Stichting Space Professionals Foundation), a foundation set-up to financially support young professionals and/or students in the Dutch space sector to apply for educational space studies programs. In 2024 he has been appointed as Chairman of the board of NVR, the Netherlands Space Society with 1200 members. Within IAF he has been nominated as Chair of the CLIODN committee (Committee for Liaison International Organizations and Developing Nations) for the period 2024 – 2027. In addition, he is the Co-Chair of the IAA Symposium on Space Policy, Regulations and Economics. He is a member of the Executive Board of the Colombian Space Agency. In 2025 he has joined the Board of the Women in Aerospace – Europe. He is frequently asked to serve as moderator and as panel member in space related events at multiple occasions.

Izabela Kowalska- Leszczyńska graduated in astronomy from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw. There she obtained a Ph.D. in physics, presenting a thesis related to the subject of gravitational waves. Since 2017, she has been an employee of the Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences, where she studies the influence of the Sun on the properties of the heliosphere. As a member of the scientific team of the GLOWS experiment, she is responsible for developing methods for calibrating the instrument once it is in orbit. Associate Professor at Space Research Centre – Polish Academy of Sciences.

Tomasz Banyś is a dedicated science communicator, at the helm of EC1 Planetarium in Lodz, Poland as its manager since 2020. Prior to this, he spent many years creating and managing its science communication team. He leverages his extensive academic, coaching, scientific, and journalistic background to convey complex knowledge about the Universe in a simple way.

Philippe is a Senior Robotics Engineer at ispace. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Luxembourg for his research on autonomous navigation for small lunar surface robots. His academic background includes studies in computer science, as well as computer visualization and animation. His experience spans both terrestrial and space robotics. He has worked on autonomous systems for unmanned aerial vehicles and served as the lead engineer on a NASA-funded high-altitude balloon experiment. He was also a trainee at ESA’s Space Operations Center (ESOC), gaining valuable experience in mission operations. At ispace, Philippe led the development of the hardware and software for the Tenacious rover’s camera systems. He directed the rover’s field test campaign, deploying test rovers in a variety of lunar analogue environments—including quarries, volcanic sites, and ispace’s indoor lunar testing facility. He also developed the ground tools used to drive the rover and served as a navigator on the operations team, supporting the pilot in guiding the rover through challenging terrain.

Maxwell Welyhorsky is a Business Development Officer at ispace Europe in Luxembourg. A qualified Professional Engineer from Canada, Maxwell also holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School at Western University in London, Ontario, Canada. Maxwell was the former Vision System Architect/Technical Lead for all cameras and sensors (C&S) on the Gateway External Robotics System, also known as Canadarm3. He was responsible for the end-to-end performance of the C&S and collaborated closely with technical authorities, astronauts, and operators for Canadarm2 at the Canadian Space Agency and NASA. Maxwell holds a Master’s in Robotics and AI from the University of Ottawa and has over 7 years technical experience in systems engineering for space robotics, military and naval communication systems, electronics design and product development for commercial avionics, and algorithm R&D for real-time object tracking. Maxwell has a strong passion for learning with a desire to break down complex problems, understand their fundamental drivers, and resolve them.

Michal Brichta works as the Director of the Slovak Space Office – Industry Branch operating within the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency. Since 2019, he has been responsible for launching and leading the comprehensive development of the national space ecosystem, increasing the Slovak space industry capabilities by 150% while making them significantly more collaborative and better connected internationally. Along with his main role, he serves as the Slovak Delegate to the Council of the European Space Agency and a Vice President of the International Astronautical Federation. He actively supports the democratisation of space and advocates for closer cooperation between the space sector and the broader ecosystem of relevant stakeholders including a wider range of technology companies, financial institutions, or major users of satellite data and signal. Over the past years, he has also been pioneering new initiatives aimed at unlocking the untapped potential of European space by fostering more efficient integration between its well-established industry and emerging space ecosystems.

Dr. Krzysztof Walas (IRMI, PUT) graduated from Poznan University of Technology (PUT) in Poland, obtaining an MSc in Automatic Control and Robotics. He received a Ph.D. in Robotics in 2012 (with honors) for his thesis on legged robot locomotion in structured environments. He completed his postdoc at the University of Birmingham, School of Computer Science, and the Intelligent Robotics Laboratory. He is a recipient of the LIDER project from the National Center for Research and Development and was a Principal Investigator (PI) in the THING project on subterranean-legged locomotion within Horizon 2020. He also serves as a PI in the REMODEL project on deformable object manipulation within Horizon 2020. Presently, he holds the position of Robotics Team Leader at IDEAS-NCBR and Assistant Professor at the Institute of Robotics and Machine Intelligence at PUT, Poland. Krzysztof Walas has been a European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) member since February 2024. In June 2024, he was elected to the board of directors of the AI, Data, and Robotics Association (ADRA). His research interests revolve around robotic perception for physical interaction, applied to both walking and grasping tasks. He was co-PI at ESA OSIP Cognition – Distributed Data System for Lunar Activities Processing. He is also involved in ESA&POLSA Polish activities to fly on ISS, with a scene reconstruction experiment on a space-grade Data Processing Unit. Finally, he is co-leading the creation of ESA SpaceShip at PUT.

Remco Timmermans is an independent online marketing and social media specialist for the international space sector. He is a well-known space influencer and mentor to aspiring space communicators. He is the founder of his own space marketing agency Spaceside OÜ, a faculty member of the International Space University and a vice chair and symposium chair of the IAF Space Education and Outreach Committee. Remco designs and runs creative online campaigns for space organisations, both in academic, government and commercial space. He is a founding member of the Space Communications Alliance, that brings together media, PR and communications professionals in the space industry. Remco has an undergraduate degree in business administration and mechanical engineering, a master’s degree in business sciences, and he is a graduate of the International Space University Space Studies Program, where he also periodically teaches space management and business, with an emphasis on marketing and communication.