| Founder(s) | Peter Diamandis, Robert D. Richards, and Todd B. Hawley |
|---|---|
| Type | Student Organization |
| Founded | October 30, 1980 |
| Origins | Started at MIT and expanded by letter to Omni Magazine |
| Key people | Dan Pastuf (current SEDS-USA president), Pranay Puchakayala (current SEDS-India president) |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Focus | "to promote the exploration and development of space" |
| Method | Student Collaboration and Connections with Space Companies |
| Endowment | Currently SEDS-USA building national endowment. |
| Members | 1000+ |
| Motto | Ad Astra per Ardua! |
| Website | seds.org |
Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is an international student organization whose purpose is to promote space exploration and development through educational and engineering projects.[1]
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SEDS is an independent, student-based organization which promotes the exploration and development of space. SEDS pursues this mission by educating people about the benefits of space, by supporting a network of interested students, by providing an opportunity for members to develop their leadership skills, and inspiring people through their involvement in space-related projects. SEDS believes in a space-faring civilization and that focusing the enthusiasm of young people is the key to humankinds future in space.
Students for the Exploration and Development of Space was founded in 1980 at MIT, Princeton University, and Yale University,[2] and consists of an international group of high school, undergraduate, and graduate students from a diverse range of educational backgrounds who are working to promote space. SEDS is a chapter-based organization with chapters in Canada, India, Israel, Mexico, Nepal, Nigeria, Philippines, Spain, United Kingdom, and United States. The permanent National Headquarters for SEDS-USA resides at MIT and that of SEDS-India at VIT University. Each chapter is fairly independent and coordinates activities and projects in its own area.
SEDS is established by on September 17, 1980 primarily by Peter Diamandis, Robert D. Richards, and Todd B. Hawley and their first meeting was held on Thursday, October 30, 1980.[3] After the initial meetings in 1980, SEDS president Peter Diamandis wrote a letter to the editor of Omni magazine deploring the status of the space program and asking students to help make a difference. The letter, published in Omni in early 1981, attracted students from around the world to SEDS. This laid the foundations for the first SEDS international conference, held at George Washington University between July 15–19, 1982.[4] As the decade progressed, SEDS continued to have more international conferences, which rotated among schools including George Washington University (again), University of Alabama in Huntsville, and Caltech. During the end of the decade, UKSEDS was founded at the Science Museum (London) and held their first conference at the University of Cambridge during 25–26 November 1989.[5]
During the 1990s SEDS continued to host a national conference each year, sometimes in conjunction with the International Space Development Conference through 1997, when the last "SEDS National Conference" was held (conferences would re-appear 7 years later as the "SEDS SpaceVision Conference"). UKSEDS continued to have national conferences at rotating locations each year. During the last years of the decade there was a major decline in SEDS leadership and a connected drop in the number of member chapters around the United States.
In 2004 the SEDS National Conferences were re-established by MITSEDS and hosted on the campus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on November 11–14.[6] The conference was re-named the SEDS SpaceVision conference and featured many speakers who would return year after year during this decade, including Loretta Hidalgo, founder Dr. Robert Richards, Rick Tumlinson, George Whitesides, Robert Zubrin, and Pete Worden. The SpaceVision conference then visited University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2005), University of Central Florida (2006), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2007), Texas A&M University (2008), and University of Arizona (2009).[7] During this time, UKSEDS continued to have one national conference each year. SEDS India, after hosting the SEDS International conference in 2007, continued with SEDS India National Conferences every year since 2009 at VIT University,Vellore, India. SEDS also began exploring innovative national projects such as fund-raising for a joint SEDS chapter Zero-G flight and designing an innovative national Rockoon competition modeled after the Ansari X PRIZE.
SEDS members are people interested in doing as much as they can to promote space exploration and development. The first step in this continual process is learning. SEDS provides an environment in which to obtain access to many sources of information including speakers, tours, films, discussion groups & daily NASA updates. Astronomical observing trips and tours of local space facilities also play a significant role in the life of many SEDS members.
SEDS members often take the knowledge they have gained and use it to influence the future of the space program. Students at several chapters have played major roles in organizing large conferences and have established important contacts with members of the space community. Others have helped increase public awareness of the benefits of space exploration by offering presentations to local primary and secondary schools as well as universities. All chapters keep in contact with each other through on-line computer networks.
Finally, SEDS provides an environment in which people of common interests can relax and freely discuss issues important to them.
SEDS is broken up by Country, Region, and Chapter. There are currently a large contingent of SEDS chapters within the United States of America, which are governed regionally and nationally by SEDS-USA. SEDS India, currently has 9 SEDS chapters under it with its head quarters at VIT University. There are also other national sections of SEDS across the world and these disparate groups of students communicate and organize together via SEDS-Earth, the global governing body of SEDS. At the current time (2009) SEDS-Earth is not heavily structured.
SEDS-USA is the governing body of all chapters within the United States. It is overseen by a national Board of Directors, Council of Chapters, and a Board of Advisers. The current (2011–12) national directors of SEDS-USA are listed below.[8]
| Position | Description | Board Member |
|---|---|---|
| Chair | Preside over board and oversee decision-making process. | Dan Pastuf (University at Buffalo) |
| Vice-Chair | Alumni and Advisers liaison. | Sara Meschberger (University of Arizona) |
| Director of Finance | Keep financial records and control legal and financial matters. | Andrew Dianetti (University at Buffalo) |
| Director of Chapter Affairs | Conduct CoC meetings and work with SEDS-USA chapters. | Daniel Zhou (Purdue University) |
| Director of Chapter Expansion | Oversee the recruiting of new chapters and their integration into SEDS-USA. | Hallie Gengl (Arizona State University) |
| Director of Publications | Design and produce all SEDS-USA mass publications. | Harvey Elliott (University of Michigan) |
| Director of Educational Outreach | Make and compile educational materials about space for outreach activities. | Erik Lopez (Illinois Space Society) |
| Director of Public Relations | Produce public releases, handle social media and other public interactions. | Brandon Seifert (University of Colorado at Boulder) |
| Director of National Projects | Work for the Board on any special projects specified by the board. | Michael Zwach (Purdue University) |
| Director of High School Affairs | Work with other directors to provide opportunities for high school students. | Pye Pye Zaw (Arizona State University) |
| Secretary | Set up meeting rooms for SEDS-USA national meetings and take minutes. | Mary Magilligan (University at Buffalo) |
SEDS-India is the national chapter for all SEDS chapters and individual members who reside in India. This organisation was formed in January, 2005 by two SEDS chapters, SEDS Mumbai and SEDS-MNNIT. Its head quarters is located at VIT University. The current (2011-2012) national directors of SEDS-India are listed below. The election was conducted by the previous executive council of 2001-2010. The election council consisted of Ch Kalyan Chandra(Ex-Secretary), SabyaSaachi Bhowmick ( Ex- President) and Abhishek Saxena Election commissioner.
| Position | Description | Board Member |
|---|---|---|
| President | Preside over board and oversee decision-making process. | Pranay Puchakayala (VIT University) |
| Vice-President | Alumni and Advisers liaison. | Lakshmanaperumal K (NIET, Coimbatore) |
| Secretary | Set up meeting rooms for SEDS-India national meetings and take minutes. | Soumya Batra (VIT University) |
| Joint Secretary Events and Projects | Oversee the Events and Projects under SEDS India. | Deepak Namdev([GGITM, Bhopal]) |
| Joint Secretary Public Relations and Outreach | Produce public releases,educational materials about space for outreach activities and handle social media,other public interactions. | Bhavan Kuchibhotla (VIT University) |
| Treasurer | Handle financial accounts. | Nimisha Soman (NIET, Coimbatore). |
UK chapter of SEDS formed in 1988. [9]
The SEDS UAE Chapter is based at the Our Own English High School in Abu Dhabi. This chapter was formed in November 2010 by a high school student, Nishith Khandwala. Members of SEDS UAE engage themselves in various activities and programs such as the International Asteroid Search Campaign. [10] [11]