Sherpa people

• But there is one that holds extra-special meaning for many – Mount Everest, or Chomolungma as the Nepalese Sherpa people call it.
• A sacred mountain for some, for others the world’s highest peak represents a challenge and a lifelong dream.
• Since then, mountaineering has become massively popular and commercial – with serious implications for the cultures and environments that sustain it.

Scaling the heights

• From 1854 to 1899 (known as the classic mountaineering period), advances in climbing technology saw ascending peaks by challenging routes become possible and popular.
• Since then, all of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks have been climbed in winter, culminating in the historic winter scaling of the 8,611-metre K2 by a Nepalese expedition in 2021.

Mass mountaineering

• Pushing to the summit may put their own lives, and the lives of other climbers and rescue teams, at risk.
• And yet the number of people attempting to climb famous peaks such as Kilimanjaro in Tanzania or Aconcagua in Argentina has increased dramatically.
• In 1992, for example, when the first commercial mountaineering expeditions on Everest began, 22 Sherpas and 65 paying mountaineers summited – one Sherpa for three clients.
• This year, however, some estimate a record of more than 1,000 people could reach the summit.

The next challenge

• They want stricter regulations and better training to protect the fragile ecosystems of the Himalayas and other mountain ranges worldwide.
• Ultimately, the future of mountaineering depends on preserving these unique mountain environments in the first place.
• Paradoxically, while it has become more accessible and popular, it has also become more challenging and complex.

• Eight small businesses will come together from across the United States for the Catalyst Accelerator’s cohort focused on Defensive Cyber Operations for Space (DCO).
• Therefore, the USSF, in conjunction with AFRL/RV, sought disruptive technologies and capabilities to aid in and further the mission of the warfighter for defensive cyber operations for space.
• The Defensive Cyber Operations for Space cohort (#CADCO) will meet two weeks per month beginning March 7th and ending June 2nd.
• Rebel Space Technologies (Long Beach, California) At Rebel Space, we advance the security of in-space communications and space systems for safer, more reliable commercial operations in low-earth orbit and beyond.

• With this investment, Fairmat aims to become a key player in the circular economy, taking a tech evolutionary leap in the recycling of advanced materials.
• Prominent business angels like Danone CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique, other CEOs and founders of successful tech startups also joined in this round.
• The new investment brings FAIRMAT's total funding so far to 44M after a seed round in September last year.
• FAIRMAT creates a more sustainable future for composites and manufacturing through a virtuous recycling process thanks to its disruptive technology.

• Therefore, both US and international solutions, with commercial market viability, were sought out across a wide array of relevant technologies to participate in the Catalyst Accelerators International SDA cohort.
• The International Space Domain Awareness cohort will meet in-person for 2 weeks at a time over a 3-month period beginning on August 9th.
• The Catalyst Accelerator team, with technical advisement from both government and industry experts, selected the following small businesses to participate in the upcoming International Space Domain Awareness cohort:
  Astrosite (Sydney, NSW, Australia) uses advanced high speed optical sensors and AI to rapidly deliver new insights into the space domain.
• LASSO delivers an innovative solution for Space Domain Awareness that can be rapidly re-tasked and networked into a game-changing global system for the Space sector.