From rocket ships to fusion reactors with Joy Dunn

Open to all, but registration is appreciated for logistics.

5:00 - 6:00 PM: Presentation (also available via the Zoom link on the Colorado Scientific Society event page: https://coloscisoc.org/meetings/ and by signing up through the "Virtual" registration.)

6:00 - 7:30 PM: Open networking (alcohol for 21+, non-alcoholic alternatives available)

Abstract: Joy will discuss her career journey across the aerospace and fusion industries and will share stories about scaling up manufacturing as an early-stage employee at both SpaceX and Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS). She will share key lessons learned that have enabled SpaceX's success and growth from a scrappy startup to an industry powerhouse and she'll provide insights into developing SpaceX's cargo and crew spacecraft program. Joy will also dive into the background of fusion energy and CFS' technological advancements to make net positive energy from fusion a reality by 2025. She'll share details about the physics of tokamaks (magnetic confinement devices), scaling the company, and CFS' plans to deploy 10,000 fusion power plants around the world to tackle our global climate change crisis.

Biography: Joy Dunn is the Head of Operations at Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), a clean energy startup based in Boston, where she is responsible for the company’s day-to-day operations including manufacturing, construction and facilities, safety, and quality. Supported by the world's leading investors and a collaborative partnership with MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center, the CFS team is driven by the climate change crisis to develop the fastest path to commercial fusion energy. In her previous role as Head of Manufacturing, Joy led the production of the world’s largest high-temperature superconducting magnet which successfully demonstrated the key technology needed to enable net-positive fusion energy. Before joining the CFS team in early 2019, Joy spent a decade at SpaceX developing and manufacturing the Dragon spacecraft to deliver cargo and astronauts to the International Space Station. Joy also co-founded both the Women's Network and LGBTQ employee interest groups at SpaceX and she is actively involved in STEM outreach events, including sitting on the Board of Directors for Out For Undergrad, a non-profit that helps LGBTQ students reach their full potential. She was also named to Business Insider's list of the Most Powerful Female Engineers of 2017 and to the World Economic Forum's Young Global Leaders in 2018. Joy received her B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.