Windesheim connects live to NASA during sustainability event

Is our future in space? Windesheim University of Applied Sciences will make a live connection with NASA on Friday 14 June during the two-day "SDG Generation" event, focusing on the United Nations’ sustainable goals.

NASA

During this unique live connection, Fernando Abilleira, Mission Design & Navigation Manager of the "Mission Mars 2020" talks about the challenges of landing on Mars. At 5 p.m. Windesheim will make a live connection to the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where the final preparations are being made for launching the rover for its journey to Mars.

Life on Mars?

"Mars 2020" is a NASA mission in which a rover analyses the geological soil processes on the planet. It looks at the history of Mars, including the possibility of past life on the planet. Abilleira will focus mainly on the process underlying the mission and the various partnerships needed to complete it successfully.

SDG Event 13 and 14 June

In addition to the live connection with NASA, there are various activities and speakers during the event, spread over two days. For example, American comedian Greg Saphiro and international Ted-Talk speaker Kaouthar Darmoni are on the programme. The "SDG Generation" event is hosted by the Windesheim Honours College and focuses on the Sustainable Development Goals. The SDGs supersede the Millennium Development Goals and are intended to end poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.

Sustainable Goals

The goals are widely supported in the Zwolle area. Eight MBO and HBO schools (i.e. Senior Secondary Vocational and Higher Professional Education) in the Zwolle area - united in the Zwolse8 - will sign the official UN SDG Charter during the event, thereby firmly embedding these sustainability goals in their education and research programmes.

Petition

The Honours College feels there should be an additional development goal, focusing on space, and has therefore started a petition. "In addition to the existing SDG 14 ‘living under water’ and SDG 15 ‘living on land’, we are missing an SDG advocating sustainable use of space," says María Garcia Alvarez, Value Creators coordinator. The ultimate goal of the petition is the addition of "Life in Space" as an eighteenth SDG.

More information on the event.

More on the petition for the eighteenth SDG.(opens in new tab)