____________Podcast Redefining Society and Technology Podcast With Marco Ciappelli https://redefiningsocietyandtechnologypodcast.com ____________Host Marco Ciappelli Co-Founder & CMO @ITSPmagazine | Master Degree in Political Science - Sociology of Communication l Branding & Marketing Advisor | Journalist | Writer | Podcast Host | #Technology #Cybersecurity #Society 🌎 LAX 🛸 FLR 🌍 WebSite: https://marcociappelli.com On LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marco-ciappelli/ ____________This Episode’s Sponsors BlackCloak provides concierge cybersecurity protection to corporate executives and high-net-worth individuals to protect against hacking, reputational loss, financial loss, and the impacts of a corporate data breach. BlackCloak: https://itspm.ag/itspbcweb ____________Title New Event | Global Space Awards 2025 Honors Captain James Lovell Legacy at Natural History Museum London | A conversation with Sanjeev Gordhan | Redefining Society And Technology Podcast With Marco Ciappelli ____________Guests: Sanjeev Gordhan General Partner @ Type One Ventures | Space, Deep-Tech, Strategy On LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sanjeev-gordhan-3714b327/ ____________Short Introduction The inaugural Global Space Awards celebrates the Golden Era of Space on December 5, 2025, at London's Natural History Museum. Hosted by physicist Brian Greene, the event honors Captain James Lovell's legacy and recognizes innovators transforming space from government domain to commercial frontier in our Hybrid Analog Digital Society. ____________Article "There are people who make things happen, there are people who watch things happen, and there are people who wonder what happened. To be successful, you need to be a person who makes things happen." Those words from Captain James Lovell defined his life—from commanding Apollo 13's near-disastrous mission to inspiring generations of space explorers. This December, London's Natural History Museum will host the inaugural Global Space Awards, an event dedicating its first evening to Lovell's extraordinary legacy while celebrating those making things happen in space today. Sanjeev Gordhan, General Partner at Type One Ventures and part of the Global Space Awards organizing team, joined me to discuss why this moment matters. Not just for space enthusiasts, but for everyone whose lives are being transformed by technologies developed beyond Earth's atmosphere. "Space is not a sector," Sanj explained. "It's a domain that overrides many sectors—agriculture, pharmaceuticals, defense, telecommunications, connectivity. Things we engage with daily." The timing couldn't be more significant. We're witnessing what Sanj calls a fundamental shift in space economics. In the 1970s and 80s, launching a kilogram into space cost $70,000-$80,000. Today? Around $3,000. That 20x reduction has transformed space from an exclusive government playground into a commercially viable domain where startups can reach orbit on seed funding. This democratization of space access is precisely why the Global Space Awards emerged. The industry needed something beyond its echo chambers—a red-carpet moment celebrating excellence across the entire spectrum, from research laboratories to scaling businesses, from breakthrough science to sustainable investments. The response exceeded all expectations. The first-year event received 516 nominations from 38 countries. Sanj and his team were "gobsmacked"—they'd hoped for maybe 150-200. The overwhelming engagement proved what they suspected: the space community was hungry for recognition that spans the complete journey from laboratory to commercial impact. What makes this particularly fascinating is how space technology circles back to solve Earth's problems. Consider pharmaceuticals: crystallization processes in microgravity create flawless crystal structures impossible to achieve on Earth. The impact? Chemotherapy treatments that currently require hours-long hospital visits could become subcutaneous injections patients self-administer at home. That's not science fiction—that's research happening now on the International Space Station, waiting for commercial space infrastructure to scale production. Or agriculture: Earth observation satellites help farmers optimize crop yields, manage water resources, and predict harvests with unprecedented accuracy. Space technology feeding humanity—literally. The investment mathematics are compelling. For every dollar invested in space innovation, the return to humanity measures around 20x. Not in stock market terms, but in solving problems like food security, medical treatments, climate monitoring, and global connectivity. These aren't abstract future benefits—they're happening now, accelerating as launch costs plummet and commercial operations expand. The Global Space Awards recognizes this multifaceted reality through eight distinct categories: Playmaker of the Year, Super Scaler, Space Investor, Partnership of the Year, Innovation Breakthrough, Science Breakthrough, Sustainability for Earth, and Sustainability for Space. Each award acknowledges that space progress requires diverse contributions—from the scientists doing foundational research to the investors providing capital, from the engineers building systems to the partnerships bridging sectors. And then there's the James Lovell Legacy Award, presented to his family at this inaugural event. The choice is deliberate and symbolic. Lovell commanded Apollo 8, the first crewed mission to orbit the Moon, then led Apollo 13's dramatic survival when an oxygen tank exploded en route to the lunar surface. His calm under pressure, innovative problem-solving with limited resources, and unwavering commitment to bringing his crew home safely epitomize what space exploration demands: courage combined with pragmatism, vision tempered by reality. The Lovell family's response to the tribute captures this spirit perfectly: "His words continue to guide not only our family, but all those who dare to dream beyond the horizon." That phrase—"dream beyond the horizon"—resonates deeply in our current moment. We're transitioning from the heroic Apollo era to something more complex and perhaps more consequential. Space is becoming infrastructure, not just exploration. The question isn't whether humans will have a permanent presence beyond Earth, but how quickly and sustainably we'll build it. The Natural History Museum setting adds another layer of meaning. Here's a building celebrating Earth's evolutionary history hosting an event about humanity's next evolutionary step—becoming a spacefaring species. The juxtaposition of dinosaur fossils and rocket technology, of ancient geology and future lunar economies, captures where we stand: creatures evolved on one small planet now reaching beyond it. Physicist Brian Greene hosting the event is equally symbolic. Not an astronaut or rocket scientist, but someone who makes complex physics comprehensible to non-specialists. Space's future depends on broad understanding, not just specialized expertise. When space technology becomes as mundane as aviation—when we stop thinking about the satellites enabling our GPS or the space-tested materials in our smartphones—that's when the real transformation completes. Sanj mentioned something that stuck with me: people ask why we spend billions on space when Earth has so many problems. The answer is that space spending helps solve Earth's problems. Better farming through satellite data. Life-saving pharmaceuticals manufactured in microgravity. Climate monitoring. Disaster response. Global internet access for remote regions. The false choice between Earth and space collapses when you understand space as a domain enabling solutions, not a destination draining resources. Looking forward, the opportunities expand exponentially. We haven't even begun exploiting lunar resources or manufacturing in zero gravity at scale. The next 5-15 years will bring benefits we can barely imagine today—but we must start now. Space infrastructure takes time. The ISS took over a decade to build. Commercial space stations, lunar bases, and orbital manufacturing facilities will require similar long-term commitments. That's why events like the Global Space Awards matter. They connect the dots between research and commerce, between investment and impact, between legacy and future. They remind us that space isn't just about rockets and astronauts—it's about chemists and farmers, investors and engineers, visionaries and pragmatists all working toward the same horizon. The finalists will be announced from the stratosphere—literally, on a screen carried by balloon—because why not? If you're celebrating space, do it with flair. As our conversation ended, I found myself hoping to attend. Not because I'm a space professional (I'm not), but because I'm fascinated by how technology reshapes society. And space technology is reshaping everything, whether we notice it or not. In our Hybrid Analog Digital Society, space represents the ultimate extension of human capability—using technology not to replace our humanity but to expand what humanity can accomplish. Captain Lovell's quote rings true: some make things happen, some watch, some wonder. The Global Space Awards celebrates those making things happen. The rest of us should at least watch—because what happens in space increasingly happens to all of us. Subscribe to continue these conversations about technology, society, and humanity's next chapter. Because the future is being built right now, and it's more exciting than most people realize. ____________About the event GLOBAL SPACE AWARDS DEDICATES EVENING TO HONOR THE LEGACY AND EXTRAORDINARY CONTRIBUTIONS OF CAPTAIN JAMES LOVELL Inaugural James Lovell Legacy Award Introduced and Presented to the Lovell Family Red-Carpet Awards Event Taking Place on December 5 at The Natural History Museum, London London
