Space Northwest aims to build a space infrastructure to bring space opportunities to the region.

The kids who went to sleep at night staring at fluorescent constellations on their ceilings may finally see their dreams as reality. The space dreamers, the ones fascinated by rockets, moon landings, and proposed visits to Mars, will recognize these dreams in their lifetimes as adults. Count in the founders of Space Northwest, Kelly Maloney, Sean McClinton, Michael Doyle, and James Burk, who make up the board of directors. All four have laser-focused business strategies that will be a reality in the short term — a cosmic mind-meld for the space industry. Come explore with us the vision of Space Northwest, who it will impact, and the results they aim to achieve. 

Some have had a vision of space in their reality for many years. James Burk, Space Northwest director, is also the current executive director for the Mars Society, a national member-based organization advocating for human Mars exploration and settlement (www.marssociety.org). The organization began in 1998, and Burk started as a founding member. In 2021, he became the first full-time executive director, after a long career with Microsoft. 

“As someone who has been trying to get people excited about space and Mars my whole life, we are getting closer as the years go on,” Burk said. Interestingly, he commented, the book and movie “The Martian” helped move things along in popular culture. The Mars Society operates a research station in Utah. It sponsors high school engineering competitions, and they work in Utah and the Arctic to replicate an early Martian settlement, including how to live and work on Mars. 

Michael Doyle and Sean McClinton, both board directors, have also been moving along both commercial and academic space-related engagement in the Seattle area. Doyle has a background in finance technology and has been interested in volunteering for the space industry for years. He said his interest in space studies runs deep, “I was born this way; I went to college to pursue physics and had Carl Sagan as a professor.” He thought at one point of going into science-related broadcasting but then had a career with Goldman Sachs, an American financial institution. 

McClinton was raised in the Seattle area and is passionate about the crossroads of space and entrepreneurship. He has held a variety of business roles, from startup founder to working at Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft and Paccar. He transitioned to the business of space via luxury travel, including space, and the founding of Space Entrepreneurs. The desire to catalyze the growth of the commercial space industry led him to meet Mike and James and to founding Space Northwest.

Kelly Maloney is a board member for Space Northwest, with deep roots in the commercial aerospace system in the region. She most notably and publicly led the Aerospace Futures Alliance (AFA), a trade organization in Seattle. Maloney also ran the Washington State Space Coalition and co-authored the Washington State Space Strategy. She has deep experience in marketing. She said, “Space Northwest is the platform for us to move the region’s space industry forward.” 

Space Northwest incorporated in July 2022. Some of their big projects at launch include continuing to run programs they’ve been conducting for years — under the new Space Northwest banner — such as the NASA International Space Apps Challenge hackathon, Techstars Startup Weekend – Space, and entrepreneurially-focused monthly meetings through their Space Entrepreneurs group. 

The organization has the four board members mentioned above, plus an advisor, Stan Shull. Stan’s history includes work with Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and market and business development consulting for space and software companies. He has a keen interest in space commercialization and actively promotes the space ecosystem in Washington State.

Their goals are lofty, as pioneers in creating a non-profit space trade organization like Space Northwest. But they have the depth of experience and the contacts to take flight. 

Broad Goals for Space Northwest 

Their primary goal is to strengthen and grow the space economy in the Pacific Northwest. They will do so through a variety of activities: 

• Economic development 
• Branding and marketing
• Sharing the economic impact of space in the region
• Conducting media outreach and public relations
• Applying for grants and funding to support their efforts on behalf of the industry and space entrepreneurs
• Workforce development 

According to the website www.spacenorthwest.org, “Space Northwest connects, educates and inspires individuals, corporations, and communities in the Pacific Northwest and beyond to foster space innovation and exploration for the benefit of life on Earth and our future in space.” 

The Mission “The space economy in Washington State is strong and growing. It is the foundation for a regional space economy in the Pacific Northwest. For the region to thrive as it is destined to thrive, we are developing the ideas, technologies and workforce needed to bolster space commercialization for the benefit of all.”

Geographically, Space Northwest is getting its start in Washington State, but the goal is to flow into Montana, Oregon, Idaho, and Alaska over time. They are hoping to establish a national and global reach through their efforts. 

CThe Crew Michael Doyle, president, and board chairmanKelly Maloney, directorSean McClinton, directorJames Burk, director Stan Shull, advisor

At this time, Space Northwest has applied for a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant. There are 16 commercial and non-profit collaborators on board with them for the “NSF Regional Innovation Engine Type-1” grant. 

Collaborators include: 

• Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
• Pacific Northwest Defense Coalition
• The Mars Society
• UW William E. Boeing Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics 
• AJAC
• Washington Space Grant Consortium 
• Gonzaga University
• Equity Space Alliance (ESA)
• City of Kent Washington 
• Washington Department of Commerce
• Nova Space
• Altek, Inc.
• OLI Global 
• Washington Space Consortium 
• Aerospace Futures Alliance (AFA)
• Pacific Northwest Aerospace Alliance (PNAA) 

About the NSF Regional Innovation Engine program: Type-1 awards are development awards that provide seed funding to enable awardees to lay the groundwork for establishing a new NSF Engine for catalyzing an innovation ecosystem for a specific topic area. Type-1 awards allow teams to prepare for successful Type-2 proposal submissions. The duration of a Type-1 award is up to 24 months, with a maximum proposed budget of $1 million. Find more at: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Nl8XGYbTvkJjIsKOgOHjfKL36YFpuHoi/view?usp=drivesdk

In addition to grant applications and the organization of events, Space Northwest exists to solve a problem. They believe, “The bones of a powerful innovation engine exist today in our region in a disconnected fashion, with good talent, expertise, and resources, but they tend to exist in silos. Our purpose is to provide programs that build the connective tissue and muscle that will enable the community to reach its fullest potential.” (www.spacenorthwest.com/about). 

Space Northwest will work to cover gaps within and between the space community, associations, and technology companies. They also hope to facilitate the development of the STEM workforce, including manufacturing technicians, AI researchers, and space entrepreneurs. Another goal for the group is to foster diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) by representing these groups in STEM careers. 

Maloney reflected that their ecosystem mantra is “Space is for everyone.” She said that DEIA “has to be foundational, building our system from the ground up; we will have the diverse, most connected workforce for all pieces of the ecosystem.” Doyle added, “This is the future of humanity; we all need to contribute to a part of that future.” 

Finally, they intend to tell the story of the region’s space economy. Maloney stated that history is being made now, with innovations and technologies on the horizon. She added that a big part of telling the story is establishing the brand of the space economy in the Pacific Northwest. Maloney asked, “What is our brand as a region with an expanding space economy, and how do we communicate that?” She observed that from there, Space Northwest would define messaging and key audiences and implement a marketing strategy to spread the word about the region’s space economy and opportunities. 

In Summary

The Space Northwest board of directors has deep experience and well-defined goals. They plan to work with many of the region’s aerospace and manufacturing companies to define a new space future for the Pacific Northwest. Are you one of the space dreamers who will join them in reaching for the stars? 

Contact

Michael Doyle, info@spacenorthwest.org