On the occasion of the fifth edition of National Space Day, the Embassy of Italy in Canada organized an event at the Royal Canadian Geographical Society in Ottawa titled “Italy–Canada Space Synergies: Bridging Challenges and Opportunities through Innovation”. The event aimed to showcase Italian expertise in the aerospace sector and discuss potential collaborations between Italy and Canada in space exploration and innovation.
The event opened with a video message from Ambassador Cattaneo, who highlighted the excellence of the Italian aerospace sector and the strategic importance of Italy-Canada cooperation in this field, building on the Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2021 by the respective national space agencies.
The first part of the meeting, focused on Italian space diplomacy, featured Col. Aniello Violetti, Space Attaché in Washington, and Dr. Maria Cristina Falvella, Space Attaché in Prague and Senior Director at ASI, who participated remotely.
This was followed by a roundtable on Italy–Canada projects and synergies, moderated by the Embassy’s Science Attaché, Prof. Costanza Conti, with participants including Col. Violetti, Nelson Ferguson, Director of Bilateral International Relations at the Canadian Space Agency, Gen. Roberto Mazzolin, cybersecurity expert at the security services company RHEA Group, and Gemma Venturino, President and founder of the clean technology company Pulshn.
The roundtable concluded with a video message from Italian astronaut Anthea Comellini, provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation for the 2025 edition of National Space Day. The event was followed by a reception to foster networking among the numerous representatives from the institutional, academic, and industrial sectors in attendance.
