U.S. Chamber Elects New Leadership to Space Council

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Space Enterprise Council elected Mike Bender, corporate director for National Security and Commercial Space Programs at Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK), as chairman for 2009. Darcie Durham Brooks, associate director for Government Relations at Orbital Sciences Corporation, was elected vice chairman for 2009.

"Both Bender and Durham Brooks bring leadership and a wealth of experience to the council," said David Logsdon, executive director. "They are both rising stars within their respective companies and the Council will benefit greatly from their skills."

Bender is the primary Washington, D.C., interface for ATK to the national security space leadership in the Department of Defense and intelligence community as well as to the commercial space offices in the departments of Commerce and Transportation. He is the principal ATK representative to the council and the Satellite Industry Association.

"Promoting the use of U.S. commercial space capabilities and services to the maximum extent possible is a top priority," said Bender. "I believe that a cornerstone of the council is to advocate this objective before the new Congress and administration."

Durham Brooks is Orbital's primary agent for all issues relating to NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and export policy. Previously, Durham Brooks was a systems engineer with Orbital and worked on commercial human spaceflight projects.

The mission of the Space Enterprise Council is to promote U.S. space commerce. The council brings the collective power of its affiliation with the U.S. Chamber and its diverse membership into a single, unified voice that is used in advocating member interests to policymakers.

The U.S. Chamber is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region., D.C.

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