European Space Agency’s Valuable 500 Commitment:
The European Space Agency (ESA) has affirmed its commitment to Diversity and Inclusiveness (D&I) by putting those values high on its agenda.
The objectives pursued develop along two axes. On one side, ESA strives to foster a broader interest for STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) and space careers and to attract, recruit and retain a more diverse pool of talent. At the same time, ESA is also increasing its efforts to create a modern, inclusive working environment where people value diversity in teams and take others’ perspectives into account and make sure they feel comfortable being themselves – regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age or working experience, sexual orientation, physical or mental challenges, ethnicity and educational, religious or social background.
ESA has focused on attracting talents with disabilities, striving to ensure a collective effort in reducing those visible and invisible barriers constraining the ability to pursue greater inclusiveness. In particular, significant steps have been undertaken in opening up to young people with disabilities, paving the way for making ESA a more inclusive, modern and forward-looking Agency.
With the launch of the Parastronaut Feasibility Project in 2021, ESA is the first space agency to open up opportunities for astronauts living with a physical disability. Including people with special needs means benefiting from their extraordinary experience, ability to adapt to difficult environments, and point of view. With this pilot project, we hope to push the envelope on the topic of disability at work, and inspire people with special needs to apply to other jobs at ESA and in the space sector.
