Space is no longer the special, protected domain that it was in the past. Because of the importance of its practical applications, it is becoming integrated into the mainstream of economic activity.
Technology push is giving way to the assessment of market opportunities and demand pull. Funding from the public sector is declining while interest in private financing is steadily growing. The value-added and service industries are increasing in importance. New technologies will be developed in a context of privatisation, de-regulation and globalization.
An international and interdisciplinary Symposium was organized by the International Space University to bring together a diverse group of people, technical and non-technical, engaged in the creation of new approaches to space applications, in order to share experiences and to exchange ideas on the way forward. The Proceedings of this Symposium make stimulating reading for all who are engaged in the market-place of space and its applications.