Teodoro Valente is the new president of the Italian Space Agency (ASI). An expert in materials for space, he succeeds Giorgio Saccoccia, in office from April 2019 to April 2023. This was announced by the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy. The decision was taken by the Aerospace Policy Committee (Comint). Chaired by Minister Adolfo Urso, the Committee approved the appointment of the new president and the Board of Directors of ASI.
With Valente, the new Board of Directors of ASI was appointed, composed of Giuseppe Basini, Marica Branchesi, Stefano Gualandris, Marco Lisi, Luisa Riccardi and Elda Turco Bulgherini.
Urso, among the commitments of the ASI the use of PNR
funds Making the best use of the funds of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and confirming Italy's leadership in the space field are among the priority objectives of the Italian Space Agency: said the Minister for Enterprise and Made in Italy Adolfo Urso, about the appointment of the new president and the new Board of Directors of ASI.
"I am particularly satisfied with the full synergy with the other ministries with whom we have shared appointments of high professional and scientific profile, which will allow the ASI to better face the demanding challenges that await our Agency also at bilateral and multilateral level", said Minister Urso in thanking the previous president of ASI Giorgio Saccoccia and wishing good work to the new president Teodoro Valente and the new Cda.
Among the commitments of the ASI, Urso also indicated "an effective and significant use of the huge funding assigned to ASI, both as transfers to the programs of the European Space Agency, and on the internal front with ordinary funds and those made available by the PNRR. Italy is a global leader in the space sector and we are ready to confirm this leadership for the benefit of the Italian industrial supply chain and the research and development connected to it".
Finally, Urso recalled that the debate with the public and private actors of the sector has started for the elaboration of a draft bill whose objective is to quickly define the national governance on Space. "Italy - underlined Urso - unlike other EU and global countries, lacks this essential regulatory framework, and we hope to remedy this gap by the beginning of next year".
Space-related issues will be among the topics at the center of the Minister's next mission to the United States, where contacts are planned with the National Space Council and with the major American commercial companies in the sector with the aim of strengthening collaboration between the US and Italy in the space sector.
Valente, from Sapienza to Cnr
Valente, 58, is director of the Institute for Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials of the National Research Council. For many years he was full professor at the Sapienza University of Rome and also served in the Research and Development Directorate of the European Commission.
Born in Rome on February 25, 1965, in 1989 Valente graduated from Sapienza University in Mechanical Engineering and in 1993, at Luiss, he completed a master's degree in Business Administration.
Between 1990 and 1992 he worked for Snamprogetti and Tecnolyte. Since 1992 he began his university career as a researcher at Sapienza; from 1996 to 1997 he was seconded to the Research Directorate of the European Commission in Brussels as a national expert for scientific and technological cooperation actions in the field of materials research. In the same period he was scientific secretary of the European committee 'Cost ad hoc Technical Committee on Materials'.
In 1998 he became associate professor at Sapienza University and since 2001 he has been full professor at the same university. He has to his credit over 120 papers published in international journals and proceedings of international/national conferences, two international patents and one national.