Bremen – City of Space – presents itself with a virtual exhibition stand at the International Space Congress 2020

The 71st International Congress of Astronautics (IAC) is being held in purely digital form for the first time in its history. This is due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Under the motto “Connecting@II Space People”, the most important international conference of the space industry will also be free of charge and accessible to everyone.

Between 12 and 14 October 2020, the international space community will meet digitally for the IAC Cyberspace Edition. The three-day congress will be accompanied by a virtual exhibition, which is “open” around the clock. Under the heading “Bremen-City of Space”, the aeronautics and space centre on the river Weser will be presenting itself at the IAC with a virtual exhibition stand.

Senator for Economic Affairs Kristina Vogt: “Bremen is the leading aerospace location in Germany and also a leader within Europe. The aerospace innovation cluster is of enormous importance for economic development. So, it goes without saying that Bremen is participating in the world’s most important aerospace event, IAC, even if in a virtual format. Especially in these times, when international travel and personal meetings are not possible, it is important to maintain existing contacts and establish new ones. The IAC Cyber Edition offers us an excellent platform for this.”

Kristina Vogt, Senator for Economic Affairs, Labour and Europe of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen.

For the first time, the IAC is open to the general public and free of charge: “This is an ideal platform, especially for young professionals to establish contacts with employers, to find out about study opportunities or about start-up networks such as the ESA BIC Northern Germany,” says Holger W. Oelze, Chairman of the Board of AVIASPACE BREMEN e.V. “The ESA BIC Northern Germany brings new start-up impulses to the region and thus strengthens Bremen’s aerospace sector. It complements the existing AVIASPACE Bremen e.V. aeronautics & space network and innovation cluster and is supported by the “Starthaus“, the central contact point for all those interested in setting up their own business and for young companies in Bremen and Bremerhaven.

In line with the motto of the IAC – Connecting @ll Space People, this year’s Bremen “City of Space” booth focuses on three main topics:  “New Space – Start-ups in Bremen”, a virtual delegation trip to Bremen and networking through virtual matchmaking.

Holger W. Oelze, Managing Director of ZARM Technik AG and Chairman of the Board of AVIASPACE BREMEN e.V. © ZARM

On the third day of the congress (14. October), the Senator for Economics, Labour and Europe and the Enterprise Europe Network Bremen are organising bilateral talks with Bremen’s long-standing cooperation partners from South Australia, North-East Canada and the Netherlands. The idea: Professional participants use the service and exchange information about future projects and business co-operations. Organised by the Bremen contact point of the Enterprise Europe Network, congress participants were able to register in advance and arrange appointments for expert discussions and exchanges.

Andreas Heyer, Chairman of the Management Board of WFB Wirtschaftsförderung Bremen GmbH, which is organising the Bremen IAC booth on behalf of Aviaspace Bremen e.V., is eagerly awaiting the new format: “I very much hope that we will succeed in making Bremen one of the central meeting places at the IAC this year, also virtually. We must make the best of the situation, actively adopt new formats and thus present ourselves as an innovative and exciting location.”

Andreas Heyer is Chairman of the Management Board of WFB Wirtschaftsförderung Bremen GmbH © WFB / Frank Pusch

The IAC International Astronautical Congress is held in a different city every year and would have taken place in Dubai this year. This is now planned for 2021 next. Bremen was awarded the contract to host the IAC both in 2003 and 2018.

Further information on the IAC is available at: https://iac2020.vfairs.com/

Information about Bremen as an aeronautics and space hub can be found at: www.aviaspace-bremen.de.