Pedro Duque

About Pedro Duque

In 1998, he performed his first space mission with STS-95 of the Space Shuttle Discovery. During 9 days in space he supervised the experimental module of the European Space Agency (ESA). In October 2003, in a Soyuz TMA spacecraft, he participated in his second trip to space: performing the work of flight engineer and visiting the International Space Station for ten days for the Cervantes Mission.

From 2011 to 2015 he led ESA’s Flight Operations Office, with responsibility for European activities on the International Space Station and was responsible for the review of ESA’s future projects for human spaceflight. Later, Pedro Duque would enter the business world as General Director of Deimos Imaging, which put into orbit the first Spanish Earth observation satellite for the improvement of agriculture, fire arrest and control and ensure the health of forests. In 2010 he will assume the position of executive chairman of this company.

During his time as minister, Pedro Duque opted from the outset for innovation, carrying out long-delayed reforms such as the consolidation of the Research Agency, the regularity of science calls, the final development of the 2011 law and the drafting of a proposal for a new Science law. It introduced numerous new innovation and collaboration programes between research and business. The 2021 and 2022 budgets meant a very significant increase in R+D resources, with programs with a quick effect on economic recovery. Likewise, it focused much of its efforts on its main area of knowledge, space, approving a six-year plan (2020-2026) consisting of increasing Spain’s contribution to the European Space Agency by 700 million.

Throughout his career he has received several awards, among which are: the Order of Friendship granted by the Russian President, Boris Yeltsin; the Grand Cross of Aeronautical Merit, awarded by King Juan Carlos and the Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation, together with other astronauts, as representatives of international cooperation in the peaceful exploration of space.

As a speaker, Pedro Duque offers the audience keys on how to achieve maximum performance, how to work and manage multicultural teams and how to achieve extraordinary achievements through personal effort and the development of science and innovation.