On 7 June 2024, the 1st National Space Congress Conference was held at the Balatonfüred Congress Centre, open to the public. The event was organised by the ORION Space Generation Foundation, with the support of the Ministry of National Economy and the Neumann Technology Platform. The event was attended by some of the most prominent figures in Hungarian space research.

^{Source: https://urnemzedek.com/first-hungarian-space-congress/}

The event brought together the scientific and business communities of the space industry in a unique way and offered a wide range of activities, including children's activities, to ensure a meaningful experience for all ages.

UniSpace, an interdisciplinary platform of 19 Hungarian universities for the promotion of higher education in space, was presented at the National Space Congress. Also, SpaceBuzz was presented, a free educational programme for children, helping them to think more responsibly about climate and the environment and to be more open to science. In 2021-2022, SpaceBuzz, a free STEAM educational programme, was implemented under the Erasmus+ international grant with the participation of 1500 students from 21 schools. The students were prepared and taken on a VR space trip that improved their creative and communication skills and made them more responsible in their attitude and behaviour towards the climate.

The aim of the conference was to promote information and knowledge sharing and to showcase the importance of space exploration. It also aimed to encourage young people to take an interest in scientific and technical careers and provided an opportunity for participants to build relationships with prominent figures in the Hungarian space industry.

At the opening ceremony of the event, Anett Fenyőfalvi, President of the ORION Space Generation Foundation, Dr. Orsolya Ferencz, Ministerial Commissioner for Space Research at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Gergely Fábián, State Secretary for Industrial Policy and Technology at the Ministry of National Economy, and Dr. István Bóka, Mayor of Balatonfüred, welcomed the participants.

In his presentation, State Secretary Gergely Fábián spoke about the current situation of the Hungarian space sector and the objectives of the Hungarian space strategy, highlighting the role of the Ministry in encouraging participation in the projects of the European Space Agency (ESA) and in increasing the competitiveness of the Hungarian space industry supplier network.

The event also featured a presentation by Jim Christensen, a senior representative of NASA, as part of a highly technical programme. The new educational materials of the ORION Space Generation Foundation and the public presentation of the Giant Moon & Mars maps were also presented at this conference.

During the day, participants were treated to a series of exciting presentations and interactive exhibitions. At the Neumann Technology Platform stand, for example, they were informed about the work and professional work of the 5G, AI, Blockchain and Drone Technology Coalitions, as well as the efforts towards the development of the Hungarian industrial strategy and space industry.

Csillagváros Ltd. is the only company operating vertical farms in Hungary and the region with a research and development profile, offering innovative, sustainable solutions for professional agriculture in a controlled environment. The company specialises in the development of crop production technologies and solutions, and represents an important trend that can add a new dimension not only to space travel, but also to the efficiency and sustainability of agriculture on the ground.

As a closing programme of the event, visitors had the opportunity to walk with Bertalan Farkas to the memorial tree of the first Hungarian astronaut and Valery Kubasov on the Tagore Promenade. They also had the opportunity to meet the new research astronaut and reserve astronaut selected for the HUNOR Hungarian Astronaut Programme.

The conference showed that programmes to support the scientific and technical education of young people (such as Erasmus+) can help us to go into space.