Astronautin - More women to space for the future of earth
Claudia Kessler |
TEDxWHU
• February 2019
Claudia Kessler one of the few female leaders in the space business. Qualified as an aerospace engineer with an MBA, Claudia Kessler has worked for more than 30 years in the international space environment. During her purposeful career, she built up an international network to global players in the space industry worldwide. In 2016 Claudia Kessler started the Astronautin initiative to select, train and fly a German female astronaut to ISS. All of the eleven astronauts sent by Germany on missions into space up to now were men. No German woman has ever been sent into space. The objective is to create a role model for women and girls and inspire them to pursue careers in technology areas and in the space industry. Scientific data on the physiological and psychological responses of a woman in space will be collected. Experiments for education and outreach will be performed. In 2009, Claudia Kessler has been co-founder of Women in Aerospace Europe(WIA-E). She continues to support female executives in their career development. Furthermore, she is member of the senate of the German Aerospace Society (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Luft- und Raumfahrt - DGLR), member of the International Aeronautical Academy (IAA) and member of the plenum of the Bremen Chamber of Commerce. From 2008 to 2018 she has been CEO of the HE Space group of companies. HE Space is an engineering services company with an exclusive focus on the space sector. Claudia Kessler lives in Bremen, is married and mother of a 21-year-old daughter.