9. Space, Youth Unemployment and Professional Status in the Financial Crisis

The European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) invited the Executive Director of the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) to make a presentation at the 6th ESPI Autumn Conference, Space at a time of Financial Crisis, highlighting the current situation of space youth in the current economic situation. Apart from the discussions generated subsequently, the main outcome of that intervention was the conclusion that there is a lack of data about this particular topic in the space sector, in contrast to the substantial amount of data that exists on youth unemployment in general. Unfortunately, in Europe, countries such as Spain, Portugal and Greece are reaching youth unemployment levels of close to 60%. This study is, therefore, a result of the main conclusion and proposal of the presentation at the 6th ESPI Autumn conference: the need to gather data from young professionals in the space community to evaluate their current status, needs, and trends. In response to this proposal, action was taken, and a survey was prepared and distributed among young space professionals from all around the world. In this report, the main findings of the European participants who participated in the survey are presented, together with some interesting conclusions and recommendations.