Speakers and Panelists Biographies

Speakers and Panelists information in order of appearance following the Agenda

Dianne Poster, NIST 

Dr. Dianne Poster provides more than two decades of technical experience in research and development for measurements, standards, technology, and data at the United States (U.S.) Department of Commerce (DOC) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Her portfolio covers innovative developments in radiation physics and chemistry, materials engineering, and optical, dimensional, and chemical metrology. Her current work supports the U.S. DOC National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Office of Space Commerce promoting U.S. space commerce through international technical standards development and innovation in space systems, data, and cybersecurity technologies. She leads DOC representation for the U.S. interagency supporting space activities, including developing principles for national strategies in cislunar science and technology, planetary defense, low Earth orbit research and development, and in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing. 

Previously, as the deputy associate director for technology and environmental policy at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, Dr. Poster administered the environmental federal regulatory portfolio and advised on policy and strategy issues related to protecting the environment.

Carolyn Pace, Office of Space Commerce 

Carolyn Pace is the Executive Officer in the Office of Space Commerce. She previously worked as a policy analyst in the Office of Industrial Base Policy at the Department of Defense and as a Program Analyst in the Office of Space Affairs at the Department of State.

During her time at the State Department, Carolyn focused on civil and military space-related policy issues, including negotiating and finalizing international space agreements and engaging with the U.S. commercial space industry. Her responsibilities involved coordinating various perspectives on civil, commercial, and national security issues, such as export controls, nonproliferation, and arms control related to space activities.

Before her work at the State Department, Carolyn was a part of the Business Development team at Astrobotic Technology Inc., a private American company dedicated to developing space robotics technology for lunar and planetary missions.

Carolyn holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from Hollins University, with a concentration in science and technology and a minor in Film Studies.

Gabriel Swiney, Office of Space Commerce

Gabriel Swiney is the Director of the Office of Space Commerce’s Policy, Advocacy, and International Division. He comes to OSC from NASA, where he was a Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy. While at NASA, he worked on norms of behavior, legal policy, and the interagency authorization and supervision effort.

Prior to NASA, Mr. Swiney was an Attorney Adviser in the State Department’s legal bureau. He led the international space law portfolio at State and the U.S. delegation to the COPUOS Legal Subcommittee.

Mr. Swiney was one of the creators of the Artemis Accords and has participated in the negotiation of dozens of space cooperation arrangements. Before focusing on space issues, Mr. Swiney worked on the use of force, sanctions, and Africa legal issues at State.

He holds law degrees from Harvard and Oxford, has taught space policy and law at Harvard Law School, and has published on a range of issues.

Robert MacPherson, Rogue

Robert MacPherson specializes in astrodynamics and mission research and development in cislunar space. At Rogue, he oversees mission planning and operations for all space missions, and works closely with the engineering team to ensure a seamless transition from Engineering to Operations. Currently he is supporting multiple research efforts including relative dynamics for RSO orbital determination in-situ, optimized low-thrust guidance in near-circular Low Earth Orbits, and rendezvous and docking dynamics to support in space logistics. He is an affiliate member of the AIAA Space Sustainability Task Force and is one of Rogue’s leading personnel focused on efforts to form an industry consortium promote the development of circular economies in space.

Joe Pawelski, CisLunar Industries

As Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of CisLunar Industries, Joe is the Chief architect of the company’s technologies that support dynamic space capabilities for government and commercial customers operating in Cislunar Space. While performing on contracts for NASA, Space Force, DARPA, and the ISS National Lab, he has recognized crosscutting opportunities across the spectrum of customer needs, which has led to the expansion of the company’s business to commercial sales. Commercially, Joe leads Modular Configurable Electric Power Converter (MCEPC) products for electric propulsion and power management and distribution. Prior to his tenure at CisLunar Industries, Joe spent over a decade in senior-level industrial project management, overseeing technical management of dozens of successfully executed multi-million-dollar projects for a variety of fortune 500 companies. He holds numerous patents. Joe earned a Master’s in Engineering in Thermal Fluids Engineering from Rochester Institute of Technology and a Graduate Certificate in Space Resources Management from Colorado School of Mines.

Matt Cunningham, Lunexus Space

Matt Cunningham is the Lead Engineer and Co-Founder of Lunexus Space. Originally an electrical engineer with over half a decade of military and industrial engineering experience working for companies such as Sikorsky, ASML, and the FAA. He has a broad knowledge of power electronics, nanoscale lithography, control system automation, and induction furnace electronics. Matt is focusing on enabling the circular space economy by developing key technologies and processes for satellite recycling and on-orbit manufacturing of photovoltaic cells.

Andrew Iams, NIST

Andrew Iams is a materials research engineer in the Materials Science and Engineering Division at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). His research is on circular economy initiatives within the primary metal manufacturing sector, with some focus on applications for in-space manufacturing. Andrew is a member of the U.S. Low Earth Orbit Research and Development Interagency Working Group. He earned his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from The Pennsylvania State University and previously served as a senior engineer at the Westinghouse Materials Center of Excellence.

David Barnhart, Arkisys Inc

David Barnhart is currently CEO and Co-Founder of Arkisys Inc, has a Research Professor Appointment in the Department of Astronautical Engineering at USC, and Director/Co-Founder of the USC Space Engineering Research Center.  At Arkisys he is leading a team to break through to true sustainable commercial operations in space with a unique scaleable services platform called The Port. The Port provides operational realization for commercial companies to innovate and optimize their businesses in space instead of on the ground, changing Space from a throwaway economy to one that can organically grow after launch.

David has served as a senior space Project Manager at DARPA, pioneering cellular spacecraft morphologies, satbotics, space robotics and low cost high volume manufacturing on the Phoenix and SeeMe projects.  He represented the first DARPA space project at the United Nations COPUOS in Vienna Austria addressing new technology pushing the need for updates to space regulations and policy issues for next generation missions.  David’s entrepreneurial ventures helped initiate two commercial space companies; co-founding and serving as Vice President and CFO for Millennium Space Systems in Los Angeles CA (now a Boeing Co subsidiary); and was the youngest elected member of a three-person international Executive Management board for a German startup in Bremen, Vanguard Space, one of the first companies working commercial spacecraft servicing.  David has a Bachelors from Boston University and Master of Engineering from Virginia Tech both in Aerospace and Ocean engineering.  He has published over 75 research papers and articles and speaks on 2nd generation space technologies nationally and internationally.

Bernard Kelm, Naval Center for Space Technology

Mr. Bernard Kelm serves as Acting Director, Naval Center for Space Technology and U.S. Navy Senior Scientific Technical Manager (SSTM) in Washington, DC. In his role, he leads a team of over 200 government engineers that design, build and fly national security spacecraft, and develop related technologies and systems for terrestrial and maritime activities. 

As Superintendent of the Spacecraft Engineering Division (SED), he leads the focal point for the Navy’s capability to design and build spacecraft from concept and feasibility planning to on-orbit operations for NRL’s space systems. The SED provides spacecraft bus expertise for the Navy, maintains an active in-house capability to develop satellites, and manages Navy space programs through engineering support and technical direction. 

Mr. Kelm has worked at NRL since 1991 and has been developing spacecraft satellite servicing technology since 2002. He has extensive program management experience with satellite servicing programs, as both program manager and deputy program manager. Mr. Kelm has filled both roles on the work that has led to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites program (RSGS).

Richard Rasansky, XCMR Inc.

Richard A. Rasansky is the co-founder and CEO of XCMR Inc., a techbio startup specializing in next generation, proprietary UV-C protection solutions to combat infectious disease transmission. A seasoned entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience, he has held leadership roles across various industries, including biosecurity, software, healthcare, financial and consumer services. He is a pioneer in global supply chain standards and IoT, with expertise in AI, machine learning, and data science. His innovations have supported real-time data services and connected solutions to drive applications, analytics, and engagement for diverse sectors such as digital health, fintech, apparel, and foodservice.

An alumnus of the Wharton School and Penn Engineering, he holds patents in respiratory protection, scheduling applications and feedback systems. Rasansky contributes to industry boards, mentors students and entrepreneurs, and lectures on innovation at leading universities.

Jeffrey Burton, Office of Space Commerce

Dr. Jeffrey M. Burton is a Senior Advisor focusing on developing and promoting U.S. competitiveness in the space economy. Prior to joining the Office of Space Commerce, Dr. Burton was at the Economic development Administration (EDA), where he contributed significantly to the development and success of national and international strategic partnerships.

Today, Dr. Burton works to connect academic institutions, trade and industry partners, and communities in an effort to develop both policy and critical relationships that build the space workforce, commercialization environment, and a national opportunity orientation.

Dr. Burton holds a Ph.D. in Public Administration from the University of Colorado. Dr. Burton teaches and conducts applied research on federal policy implementation at the University of Colorado and is a Research Associate at Harvard University’s Project for Indigenous Development and Governance.

Kyle Cybul, Clean Orbit Foundation

Kyle Cybul is the co-founder of the Clean Orbit Foundation, a research and advocacy organization dedicated to advancing sustainable space operations through the development of a circular economy. Through a combination of education, advocacy, and international collaboration, the foundation aims to mitigate the environmental impact of space activities and promote responsible stewardship of outer space. With a diverse background spanning financial technology, space, and military & defense, Kyle brings expertise in program management, business operations, and business development to drive the foundation’s initiatives forward.

Christie Cox, NASA 

Christie Cox is the International Space Station Division utilization manager within the Space Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Cox supports ongoing research with NASA and the ISS National Laboratory with a focus on transitioning to the post-space station commercial low Earth orbit destinations. She works closely with departments and agencies across the U.S. government to build a strong coalition to support research and technology demonstration in low Earth for years to come. Cox also serves as the executive secretary for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Low Earth Orbit Science and Technology Interagency Working Group. Prior to moving to Washington, D.C., Cox worked at NASA’s Johnson Space Center supporting the International Space Station in a variety of roles for 15 years, including working as an Environmental Control and Life Support Systems and emergency hardware project manager, subsystem manager for the Oxygen Generation System, and the consumables and strategic flight planning lead. She received her Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the University of California at San Diego. 

Jon Beam, Rogue Space Systems

Jon Beam is CEO and Co-Founder of Rogue Space Systems.  Originally trained as a research scientist in Cognitive Systems & Behavioral Neuroscience, Jon spent a quarter of a decade progressing through various IT and business leadership roles in several industries.  An expert in driving collaborative innovation, Jon has become a leader in In-Space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) and as an architect building the circular economy in space.