MAS.859 Space Technology for the Development Leader

We enjoyed a special event on Monday, March 20: Guest Lecture by Dr. Zolana Joao, Director General of the Angolan Space Program.  Please see the captioned video below.

Biography for Dr. Zolana Joao, special guest speaker for March 20:

Dr. Zolana Joao is the founding director of the Angolan space program. During the past decade, Dr. Joao has led the country of Angola in Southern Africa to establish a national space strategy. Dr. Joao's leadership was instrumental in completing the first major space mission which included acquiring a communication satellite and mission operations system that serves to increase connectivity in the country. Dr. Joao is also dedicated to increasing the skills of the people in the space program through hands-on training and education, while developing local capabilities to apply satellite earth observation data to address local challenges such as oil spill detection and agricultural monitoring. Dr. Joao earned the doctoral degree at George Washington University in Washington D.C. Currently, Dr. Joao is collaborating with a US-based team led by Professor Danielle Wood. With funding from the NASA Applied Sciences Program, Dr. Joao and Prof Wood are designing a system to apply NASA soil moisture satellite data to support drought management in Angola. This talk will share stories of the challenges Dr. Joao has overcome as the leader of a new space agency.

Spring 2023 MAS Graduate Course (open to undergraduates and grads at MIT, Harvard and Wellesley)

Dates for Spring 2023 Semester:  February 6 to May 15

Class meetings : Mondays, 9am to 12pm in Building E14 Room 493 (Hybrid connection via Zoom is available via this link)

Course Management via Canvas: https://canvas.mit.edu/courses/19852 

This course will help you understand how the rapidly changing technology and policy in the space sector matters to your life. Join us as we seek to form a shared vision for a space-enabled society that is sustainable economically, socially and environmentally.

Course Information

Office Hours are by announcement. Please join wood_officehours@mit.edu for more information. See below for the 2023 syllabus.

Course Prerequisite: Permission of the Instructor; No previous knowledge of space technology or development is required.

Course Description: This course will introduce students to the intersections between space technology and sustainable development by examining technical, policy and social aspects of seven space technologies. The technologies we discuss include satellite earth observation; satellite communication; satellite positioning; human space flight and microgravity research; space technology transfer; fundamental scientific space research; and small satellites. The seminar will explore how these technologies can promote sustainable development via discussions, lectures, readings and projects. The seminar will also examine what upcoming trends in the space field are likely to impact the application of space for development. The course considers development from the perspective of leaders at several scales, including international development agencies, national governments, local community leaders and socially-motivated entrepreneurs. The mission of the Space Enabled Research Group is to advance justice in earth's complex systems using designs enabled by space. The Space Enabled Research Group defines justice in two ways. First, in a just world, the benefits of public service technology would be available to people living in all nations and from all socioeconomic levels. This is currently not the case due to driving forces of the modern era, including colonialism, racism and imperialism, which have concentrated both wealth and technology access heavily within certain countries or urban centers. Second, the future will be more just if the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations are achieved and exceeded. The course posits that technologies from space have been used to support sustainable development for decades, however, barriers remain that limit the impact of these technologies. This 6-unit seminar takes an applied approach and explains practical features that arise when implementing space technology in support of sustainable development. 

Note on related course: This course thematically follows the fall semester course taught by Professor Danielle Wood entitled “Can Space Enabled Designs Advance Justice and Development?”. It is not necessary that a student takes the fall course first, although students are encouraged to take both courses, in either order, to understand the full range of concepts. Both courses examine aspects of the mission statement of the Space Enabled Research Group at the MIT Media Lab which is to advance justice in Earth’s complex systems using designs enabled by space.

Learning Objectives: After taking this class, students should be able to:

• Describe examples of the ways that space technologies have been used to support sustainable development, while also discussing the barriers that limit their impact
• Explain the origin, purpose and impact of the United Nations Sustainable
• Development Goals and their relationship to space technology
• Describe the roles played by development leaders in organizations such as multilateral institutions, national governments, local governments, non-governmental organizations, multinational companies, and small private firms
• Write reflective responses that capture learning from the readings
• Apply the Systems Architecture Framework adapted by Professor Wood to analyze stakeholders, needs, context, objectives, forms and functions
• Write a research paper that analyzes the use of a particular space technology in support of the Sustainable Development Goals using the Systems Architecture Framework

Structure of Class Meetings: The class will meet once per week for virtual three-hour sessions. Attendance in the class meetings is mandatory for students taking the course for credit and it is a vital aspect of class learning and participation. Each student will have the opportunity to lead part of the class activities during the semester.

A typical class session includes the following activities:

• Presentations by students on individual semester projects
• Lecture by instructor or guest speaker on a specific theme outlined in the syllabus

Learn about the 2022 Spring Semester edition of the course and watch videos of past guest speakers: https://www.media.mit.edu/posts/spring-2022-class-1/.