Recently, GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides and Nichi Vendola, 
President of the Network of European Regions Using Space Technologies (NEREUS) met in Brussels.
The meeting kicked-off a dialogue between NEREUS and the GSA on how to convey the concept of space to the European regions, and in particular SMEs and individual end users, who are increasingly relying on space-based applications.
“We are all aware of the relevance of the programmes the GSA is working on and how satellite positioning has become essential for socio-economic prosperity,” said Vendola. “GNSS has already become the backbone of a growing industry worth billions of euros.”
During the meeting, Vendola described how a region such as Puglia, which has been working vigorously to develop its own aerospace sector, is now developing a project that will see Grottaglie Airport become a test site for aviation and remote pilot control. In this sense, the utilization of GNSS programmes like EGNOS and Galileo within the aviation sector, for example, can prove decisive for European regions.
“With its 24 regions and 40 associate members, NEREUS will help us better understand and respond to specific user needs for services and systems that stand to benefit from satellite navigation,” said des Dorides.
The meeting represents an important milestone in NEREUS’ 2014-2015 roadmap. One of its key objectives is to open a dialogue with the primary actors in space, including the GSA, ESA, national space agencies and all European institutions engaged in the sector.
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Carlo des Dorides, Executive Director, GSA
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