Visionaries Needed
Interview by Paul Crookall
TOTALLY NOMINAL IS NASA-SPEAK FOR "ACCORDING TO PLAN," AN APT DESCRIPTION OF THE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY'S RETURN TO EARTH IN AUGUST. IT IS ALSO THE DESIRED STATE MOST MINISTERS HAVE FOR THEIR DEPARTMENTS AND MOST EXECUTIVES FOR THEIR PROJECTS. Canada has been involved in space since the 1962 launching of the Alouette satellite and continues to be at the forefront of international cooperation. We spoke with Marc Garneau, Deputy Minister of the Canadian Space Agency.
THE PUBLIC SERVICE IS GENERALLY RISK-AVERSE, YET YOU VENTURE OUT INTO SPACE. WHAT IS YOUR APPROACH TO RISK?
Apart from the astronauts, we are not at risk of loss of life, but we do manage very risky projects. The arm we built for the International Space Station, if it fails, there is risk to the investment of 15 countries and the whole project. The Radarsat-2 Earth Observation satellite to be launched next year costs almost twice our annual budget, and we could lose it all on launch. You can be sure the night before the launch I won't be sleeping well.
The space industry attracts a special kind of person. In the public service, especially in the higher ranks, we are risk averse. I don't say this as a criticism, but we become reactive, we seek to eliminate risk. The downside is that this kills vision, our desire to think in courageous terms. It bothers me that we have reached that state in the public service.
The questions we ask are, "Will it get me in hot water, embarrass the Minister?" Instead we should be proactive and visionary. I believe Canadians will forgive us for our occasional failures if they recognize we have some vision, but mistakes can be made in honestly pursuing our mandate. Many young people join with great altruism and dreams of what they will do, but somewhere along the way up the system there is, unfortunately, a culture that gradually makes them more risk averse. My overwhelming impression of government executives is they are bright, they need make no apologies for their quality. But perhaps we all need to be slightly more visionary, to take a little more risk. I think we should be more proactive and aggressive.
HOW DID YOU MANAGE THE TRANSITION FROM NAVY ENGINEER TO ASTRONAUT, AND THEN TO EXECUTIVE?
I didn't prepare, per se, for the transition from naval engineer to astronaut. I was very happy in the Navy, but then I saw the ad for Canadian astronauts and applied spontaneously. My naval career was an excellent preparation, the similarities of being focused on a specialty and working with the same small group for years. They train and execute missions together, live and work together, depend on each other, in uncomfortable working and living conditions.
It was a bigger transition from astronaut to executive. My project management experience was helpful, I knew the space business, but by far the biggest challenge was to learn how to deal with Ottawa. I had no experience. It took me two and a half years to learn the machinery of government, establish a network, and gain credibility in interdepartmental committees. There was skepticism that an outsider could do the job of a deputy minister. Now, after four years, I have been in the job longer than many of the central agency people I am dealing with.
WHAT IS IN THE FUTURE FOR THE SPACE AGENCY?
The space arm and camera were important to inspect the thermal tiles on the last flight, and Julie
Payette was CapCom – capsule communicator. Steve MacLean is scheduled for flight in early
2006. Dextre, the two-armed robot we are developing to help on the International Space Station, is due up in 2007. The shuttle and station are amazing technologies. It inspires me. And it challenges us, at the very edge of human capability.
We have big dreams, we see a greater role serving other departments. We have many objectives or thrusts, but the two biggest are: Earth Observation and Space Exploration. The earth observation is done in support of other departments – helping Agriculture, Fisheries, Defence. For example, measuring the shrinking ice sheets for Environment, providing data during natural disasters. That is an easy sell to my colleagues, since it helps them now.
It is harder to sell Space Exploration, since the Government is not sure it wants to invest heavily in exploration, being concerned over how we will benefit. Yet 80% of Canadians surveyed want us to be in this. I believe one of the reasons the USA became a superpower was in part due to their vision of space – and they ended up profiting from the investment. Space Exploration needs political vision and direction: the belief that it will bring us long-term benefits.
My most important task as a leader is to keep my eye on our mandate. When I run into brick walls, it is tempting to modify the story to something easier or more appealing. But we have a specific mandate, we have to stick to that story.
For more on Canada’s space program see www.space.gc.ca
