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Diverse Dozen

This exclusive community of passionate thought leaders are dedicated to preserving a debris-free off-world environment.

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Meet the 5th Diverse Dozen

The 5th Diverse Dozen cohort shared their passion and excitement for a sustainable off-world future in Las Vegas, Tuesday, 30 July, 2024.

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CANADA
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Awe Nifemi

Nifemi Awe
Management Consultant
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC Canada)

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NEW ZEALAND
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Dhopade Priyanka

Priyanka Dhopade
Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Engineering
University of Auckland

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MACEDONIA
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Dimoska Martina

Martina Dimoska
Founder & President
International Space Alliance

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PUERTO RICO
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Figueroa Jose

Jose Figueroa
Founder
Aqua/Sky Launch Innovations (ASLI)

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UNITED STATES
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Gohardani Amir

Amir Gohardani
Chief Executive Officer
Springs of Dreams Corporation

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UNITED STATES
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Macharia Kim

Kim Macharia
Founder & Executive Director
Brave Leap

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GERMANY
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Mierau Isabelle

Isabelle Mierau
Founder
Space Debris DAO

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PAKISTAN
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Mushtaq Sumbal

Sumbal Mushtaq
Founder
Astralbeam Organization

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NIGERIA
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Okpalefe Alma

Alma Okpalefe
Executive Director
World Space Week Association

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UNITED STATES
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Overmyer Carolyn

Carolyn Overmyer
Director, Orion Chief Engineer
Lockheed Martin Space

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GERMANY
ASCEND Diverse Dozen Stelmakh Drescher Olga

Olga Stelmakh-Drescher
Chief Policy, Legal & Government Relations Officer
Exolaunch

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PAKISTAN
Diverse Dozen Salman Ali Thepdawala

Salman Ali Thepdawala
Ph.D. Candidate & Munich Aerospace Scholar
University of Bundeswehr – Munich

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Our Diverse Dozen Participants Are from All Over the World!

Browse the map and hover over each dot to view the Diverse Dozen (D12) essays from previous years.
You can use the controls on the top left to navigate and zoom in.

2024 Diverse Dozen Op-Eds

The 2024 cohort of the Diverse Dozen are influential thinkers and emerging leaders from around the globe. These individuals represent an exclusive ASCEND community built over the past five years of exceptionally minded and passionate activists devoted to realizing a sustainable future beyond Earth. These authors are the featured speakers in a series of rapid-fire lightning talks highlighting their vision for a sustainable space ecosystem. What needs to happen for space to be more transparent, more predictable? How can we use a globally accessible pool of evidence to help us make decisions and hold people accountable for their behaviors in this shared domain?

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Past Diverse Dozen Highlights

ASCEND 2024 Session: Diverse Dozen

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2023 Diverse Dozen Op-Eds
2022 Diverse Dozen Op-Eds
2021 Diverse Dozen Op-Eds
2020 Diverse Dozen Op-Eds
ASCEND D12 2024 Cohort

About the Diverse Dozen (D12)

The brainchild of astrodynamicist Moriba Jah, co-founder/chief scientist at Privateer and associate professor of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at the University of Texas, the Diverse Dozen is the exclusive ASCEND community of thought leaders and activists whose intellectual and emotional commitment to building a sustainable off-world future knows no bounds.

“D12 is centered on the belief that we’re more similar than we are different, and action is best when born from compassion,” says Jah, a space environmentalist advancing our ability to understand how human objects in space create both services and risks of collisions.

In an effort to address this topic, and coming from a place of honoring and respecting the relationships and relatedness among all things, as well as of acting with compassion, Moriba Jah has partnered with ASCEND to create a one-of-a-kind annual event that invokes diverse and unique voices from humanity to tell the world about salient issues in space safety, security, and sustainability.

ASCEND Diverse Dozen Members have the opportunity to:

  • Craft an impactful opinion essay that will be shared with the ASCEND community.
  • Present visionary ideas as a thought leader at the ASCEND event.
  • Unleash new opportunities by expanding professional networks.

D12 members also receive:

  • Roundtrip coach airfare to the ASCEND conference
  • ASCEND registration
  • Accommodations for three nights at an official event hotel

Interested in becoming a member of the D12?

Applications for the 6th Diverse Dozen open in winter 2025.

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