State Space Advocacy

Next week is Georgia Aerospace Day, “a unique opportunity for the aerospace industry to showcase their technology and highlight this important industry's contributions to Georgia's economy,” describes the event page. This year will be the first time my nonprofit Georgia Space Alliance will participate. The policy wonk in me can’t wait!

I’ve been interested in policy since high school. In 11th grade I participated in a program called Presidential Classroom in Washington, DC. I didn’t know anything back then, but I was excited to learn. My love of space persuaded me to pursue astrophysics in college, but I still held onto that policy interest.

It wasn’t until the summer between my junior and senior year of college that I realized space policy was a field. I was an intern in NASA Academy and heard a lecture by an astrophysicist involved in space policy. I could have listened to him for hours. I was hooked. I had no idea how to get involved, but I felt called to it.

As my astrophysics studies in grad school intensify, I had little time to focus on anything else. I was committed to a science career path and realized I could do space policy on the side. But I didn’t have the opportunity to do so until I switched universities and switched fields to planetary science.

I am forever grateful my PhD advisor was so supportive of my various interests. He and another professor recommended me for the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science's Federal Relations Subcommittee. I was so thankful AAS paid my way to Washington, DC for my first congressional visit. It was just me without a group, so I had to figure it out on my own. I created my own leave-behind document and met with my congressman and a few other offices. My visits went so well and I felt so welcomed! I was motivated to do more.

I don’t remember how I heard about Florida Space Day, but I knew I wanted in. It took me a year to gather the courage to ask. I was just a graduate student, not a representative of a space company or anyone important. Florida Space Day required sponsorship to participate. Even so, I asked. And I asked people I knew who were involved to ask on my behalf. To my surprise, they agreed to bring me with them to the state capital Tallahassee!

I was so nervous to be among all these important people, I didn’t know what to expect or what to say. I didn’t realize at the time elected officials enjoy hearing from students who represent both current education and the future workforce. I was even encouraged to sneak into the VIP-only meeting with the lieutenant governor under the philosophy “it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.” And I was later indirectly scolded for it. But I’m glad I did; I got to meet a strong woman in politics who was passionate about space and who wore purple pumps.

I would go on to participate in Florida Space Day for 4 years serving on both the Implementation Committee and the Steering Committee and leading the Outreach Subcommittee. I became a team leader during the annual congressional visit to the state Capitol in Tallahassee. I had found my space policy community in Florida and thrived in it. I was even asked to serve on Representative Bill Posey’s Space Advisory Council for a year until I moved away.

The space community in Georgia is small but growing. A year ago I formed the nonprofit Georgia Space Alliance to bring all the space players together. Shortly after I moved to Georgia, I met with officials to gauge the status of space activity and space policy in the state. I was advised by four unrelated people to form an organization with members to bring all the voices together in unity to advocate for space in Georgia. So I did.

Georgia Aerospace Day didn’t take place the first year I lived in Georgia. The second year it did, but I had a 19-day-old baby and couldn’t participate. This year, for the first time, Georgia Space Alliance will participate in Georgia Aerospace Day with a team of approximately a dozen people. To my knowledge, this will be the first time a space organization participates in the aviation-dominated Aerospace Day. I look forward to advocating for space with our team!

Traveling to a state or federal capitol is a great way to meet with legislators, but it’s not the only way. I have my elected officials' numbers programmed in my phone and call their offices regularly to discuss legislation and current events. Politicians want to hear about topics most important to their constituents. You can also email or physically write to your elected officials. Use your voice! Tell them why space is so important to you and thank them for their support.

The Birth of a Book

March 7, 2016. It started with a thought, casually tweeted: “I'm playing with a book idea. Anyone out there in the 'millennial' generation working in the space industry willing to be interviewed?”

Millennials this. Millennials aren't that. Millennials are doing this and killing that. So many articles, so many stereotypes, so many negative portrayals. I didn't feel fairly represented.

The story I wanted to know wasn't being told: how are millennials changing the world through space exploration? What grand accomplishments does my generation hope to achieve in space? What do we prioritize and value? What are our individual and collective dreams? And through asking these questions, can I read between the lines to understand whether any of the millennial stereotypes hold true?

I never saw myself becoming a book author. I never saw myself becoming a small business owner, either, but life takes us on unexpected journeys. The idea, planted in my mind, publicly sprouted on Twitter, grew. Numerous people stepped up to volunteer their thoughts and support.

I sincerely appreciate my gracious and talented interviewees. Without them, this book would not exist. I am but one millennial. By the time the interviews were completed, 100 voices from multiple countries, a diversity of disciplines, and a mix of employers had given Rise of the Space Age Millennials life. All I had left to do was to put it all together.

Life got in the way. I had an infant. We moved four times. I had two computer crashes and thought I lost data until I rediscovered my back-up. I had a second baby. There were lots of starts and stops, long stops. At times, I thought the barriers were so high, I would never finish it.

The seemingly insurmountable barrier was one I had erected in my own mind. No one praises my writing. It's good enough to get by for my usual purposes. But it's not popular or award-winning. I don't have a gift for prose. My writing is functional but not fun. Why would anyone pay to read my writing for the fun of it?

I convinced myself I was no good at book writing and I shouldn't take money from people to give them an amateur book that could be better written by someone else. Why waste everyone's time? Why set myself up for rejection?

It took a lot of bad books to change my mind. I knew how to pick them in 2018. I read one forgetable book after another. Some of them were okay. Some of them weren't even worth my time to finish. The best book I read all year, Oh Crap! Potty Training, is wildly popular yet I'd grade it a C for writing excellence.

And then it occurred to me: every book I had read was recommended to me or was somehow placed in my awareness despite the fact that they were average to poor quality. If those books got published and put on shelves, why shouldn't my book have the same opportunity?

I conquered my fear of rejection by choosing to ignore it. I was writing for myself to finally get this book out of my head. I no longer cared whether it sold. Ten seemed like a respectable low bar; I decided to try to sell ten books and call it a success. I vowed to do my best not to read reviews or glance at star ratings. It doesn't matter. Someone will love it. Someone will hate it. My book isn't for everyone, but it's for someone. It's for me. And maybe it's for others too.

I calculated the bare minimum budget I needed to publish with editing, art, and publishing costs. I rounded: $1000. Kickstarter is an all-or-nothing crowdfunding platform; I needed to raise at least $1000 or I'd get nothing at all.

I raised my goal within the first 2 hours of the campaign. I met my stretch goal as well: enough of a budget to record an audiobook. I was flattered by the positive response. The topic interests people. I hope my writing will as well.

As of this posting, there's 24 hours left in the Kickstarter campaign. Preordering the book through the campaign allows me to include extra perks such as thanking contributors in the book, autographing, consulting, and traveling for a lecture and book signing.

If you're reading this within the last 24 hours, you still have time to support the Kickstarter campaign and preorder your copy: https://kickstarter.com/projects/spacemillennials/rise-of-the-space-age-millennials

I still have plenty of work left to do. I won't truly believe it's real until I'm holding it in my hands. I'm not going to let anyone stop me, not even myself.