Yuri’s Night

The concept of Yuri’s Night was first conceived by Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides, George T. Whitesides, and Trish Garner during the Space Generation Forum at the UNISPACE III conference in 1999. The Vienna Declaration after UNISPACE III set up a new World Space Week “between 4 and 10 October for the yearly celebration at the international level.” This event was timed to commemorated the launch of Sputnik 1 on Oct 4 and the signing of the UN Outer Space Treaty on Oct 10. Wishing to specifically celebrate the human aspects of spaceflight, George and Loretta moved ahead with planning for the first Yuri’s Night event on April 12: a dual anniversary of human spaceflight achievements. In 2000, Yuri’s Night was announced as an event in LA scheduled for April 12, 2001. Friends and colleagues, including those from the Space Generation Forum, asked to host their own celebrations around the world at the same time. The World Space Party was born and continues to rock the planet today!

From 2001 until 2010, Yuri’s Night was a project of the Space Generation Advisory Council and run under the non-profit Space Generation Foundation in the United States. In 2010 Yuri’s Night became an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in the United States. As of 2022, the name of the nonprofit is changing to The SpaceKind Foundation to better reflect the variety of programs and projects being supported. The Yuri’s Night name and branding will continue to be used for global outreach events.

The mission of The SpaceKind Foundation is to use the excitement and inspiration of space as a catalyst for educating and developing the next generation of explorers. We fulfill this mission through a commitment to:

• empowering leaders: in making a difference, pursuing their dreams, and inspiring others to do the same.
• building communities: working shoulder to shoulder on visionary projects, overcoming barriers and finding common ground.
• bridging cultures: be they geographic, social or technical, we are all learning to speak each other’s languages.
• encouraging science literacy: bringing people hands-on experiences and passionate storytelling to explore their physical world and nurture their love of learning.
• promoting a sustainable and peaceful future: sharing “the Overview Effect” with all people, inspiring them to take ownership of our home planet and the future of humanity.