Dr. Egbert Edelbroek
Dr. Egbert Edelbroek is founder & CEO of SpaceBorn United. This biotech/space research company is focused on enabling human reproduction in space and improving IVF on Earth. As a scientist and serial entrepreneur Egbert always focussed on transformative, impactful innovation. He is passionate to help humanity become a multi planetary species and expand the human comfort zone beyond earth. Egbert combined his passion for space exploration with reproductive technology shortly after he became a sperm donor in 2010. This inspired him to re-engineer existing IVF technology for application in space. He earned his PhD in Courage Development in organizations.
Dr. Alexander Layendecker
Dr. Alexander Layendecker is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and served seven years as an Air Force space operations officer. During his time on active duty he served as a space launch range control officer and instructor, a space tactics officer for the USAF Aggressors, and completed a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He later transferred to the USAF Reserve to serve as an HH-60G pilot for Combat Search and Rescue. He completed a Masters of Public Health from the Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in 2013, and a PhD in Human Sexuality in early 2016. Dr. Layendecker’s research focused on human sexuality and reproduction in off-Earth environments, the history of research in this area, and the research gaps that must be filled in the future in order to make long-term settlement of other worlds a viable possibility.
Scott Solomon
Dr. Scott Solomon is a biologist, professor, and science communicator. He teaches ecology, evolutionary biology, and scientific communication as an Associate Teaching Professor at Rice University in Houston. Dr. Solomon is also a Research Associate at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History. He has a Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior from the University of Texas at Austin where his research examined the evolutionary basis of biological diversity in the Amazon Basin. He has taught field biology at Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory in Gothic, Colorado and developed a complete digital lecture series on the modern science of evolution with The Great Courses. Before coming to Rice, he worked as a visiting researcher with the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC and São Paulo State University in Rio Claro, Brazil.
Dr. Solomon often speaks and writes about science at schools, museums, churches, science cafés, TEDx events and other venues and has appeared on radio broadcasts on NPR and the BBC World Service and television series such as NASA’s Unexplained Files and Life 2.0. His writing and photography have appeared in publications such as NBC News, Slate, Aeon, Nautilus, and Wired and his first book, Future Humans: Inside the Science of Our Continuing Evolution was published by Yale University Press and was included on the 2017 Best Book List by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).