As we kick off the final quarter of the year, we are happy share that we have welcomed a host of new faces to our Vienna-based team, which is a direct result of the International Recruitment Campaign we launched earlier this year. The addition of this round of new hires marks another milestone of growth for the ESPI family and to celebrate this, we are commencing a four-part, month-long campaign showcasing each new team member, getting to know them a little better, and asking them what they’re most looking forward to here at ESPI.
We’re happy to begin with our two new senior members of our team:
- Therese Jones, Senior Research Fellow
- Jara Villanueva, Lead of the Centre for Sustainability & Resilience
Therese Jones joins ESPI from the US, where she was a Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of Science and Technology, Policy, and Strategy (OTPS) at NASA Headquarters from 2023-2025, leading strategic planning work for the Deputy Administrator on space sustainability and lunar policy. From 2018-2023, she served as the Senior Director of Policy at the Satellite Industry Association, where she supported work on regulatory, legislative, defence, space sustainability, cybersecurity, export control and trade issues of critical importance to the Association’s 60+ member companies. Previously, Therese was an assistant policy researcher at the RAND Corporation, where she focused on space policy, and prior to that worked as an astrophysics researcher focusing on galaxy formation and evolution. Therese holds a Ph.D. in Policy Analysis from the RAND Graduate School, a master’s in astrophysics from the University of California, Berkeley, and bachelor’s degrees in astronomy and astrophysics, physics, German, and international studies from The Pennsylvania State University.
Jara Villanueva is a Filipina space and geospatial engineer with over a decade of international experience across the space sector. Her work spans the full space value chain, from the design and development of satellites and sensors to mission planning, data-driven applications, and the integration of science into policy and national strategies. She has worked alongside space agencies, private sector, and global organizations to expand the reach and impact of Earth observation and space-based solutions, particularly in support of sustainable development efforts.
