Meet Your New Europlanet Board Members

The results of the elections of the Europlanet Executive Board were announced at the Europlanet General Assembly at EPSC-DPS 2025 on Tuesday 9 September. Three new members were elected to the Board to join the President, two Vice-Presidents, Treasurer, Secretary and three Board Members.

Find out about their objectives and what they hope to achieve by serving on the Europlanet Executive Board over the next four years:

New Executive Board Members

Grace Richards – Postdoctoral Researcher, INAF-IAPS

As a postdoctoral researcher, I understand both the opportunities and the challenges that shape the journeys of students, PhDs, and postdocs within our community. I have been actively involved in Europlanet for several years, through the Transnational Access scheme, the Early Career Communications Working Group, review panels, teaching resources, illustrating EPSC conferences, and speaking at the Early Career Annual Week. These roles have shown me the breadth of opportunities Europlanet provides for early career researchers, both within academia and in many other career paths.

If elected to the Executive Board, my priorities will be to highlight funding and training opportunities, so early career researchers are aware of the resources that can help their careers progress. I want to strengthen links with the Early Careers Network, acting as a facilitator between the grassroots community and Europlanet leadership. I will work to broaden career pathways, encouraging opportunities in communication, policy, and industry as well as academia. I will also support inclusivity and accessibility, helping to reduce barriers for underrepresented groups and under-resourced regions. Finally, I want to recognise and celebrate the contributions of young researchers, ensuring they feel connected, represented, and empowered within our community.

Séverine Robert – Planetary Atmospheres, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA/IASB)

I am a planetary scientist working on planetary atmospheres at the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy in Brussels. For the past five years, I have been actively involved in the Europlanet Regional Hubs. This experience has shown me the challenges of building and maintaining active local communities, but also reinforced my belief in the importance of creating these connections. I am convinced that our community becomes stronger, more impactful, and more resilient when we collaborate, share resources, and bring together diverse ideas.

If elected to the Executive Board, I will support Europlanet in sustaining its long-term activities, ensuring geographical inclusivity, and encouraging the participation of early-career researchers. I want to help shape the Society’s strategic direction, support existing initiatives, and bring new ideas with energy and commitment. I believe that learned societies such as Europlanet are essential for structuring our community, promoting our disciplines, and building bridges between science, society, and policy. As a Board member, I will be dedicated to actively representing the members, encouraging synergies across the Regional Hubs, and advancing the core values of openness and cooperation that lie at the heart of the Europlanet Society.

Stéphane Erard – Observatory of Paris / LIRA / VESPA

I am a planetary scientist at the Observatory of Paris / LIRA, working on the origin and evolution of terrestrial planets and small bodies, from Mars to asteroids, comets, the Moon, and Mercury. My career bridges observation, modelling, and data stewardship, always with the aim of making scientific progress collaborative, open, and inclusive. Over three decades, I have contributed to major space missions such as Mars Express, Rosetta, Venus Express, and BepiColombo, alongside telescopic and laboratory studies of planetary surface spectroscopy. Since joining Europlanet-RI in 2009, I have led efforts to make Solar System data openly available, including coordinating the VESPA data access service, a cornerstone of Europlanet’s infrastructure.

If elected to the Board, I will work to strengthen data services for researchers and Pro-Am collaborations, expand collaboration between space agencies, institutions, and infrastructures such as EOSC, and support early-career researchers through training, mentorship, and international networking. I will also promote diversity and inclusion to reduce barriers for underrepresented groups and countries, and encourage sustainable practices in research infrastructure. I bring experience in data leadership, a deep knowledge of Europlanet’s frameworks, and a vision for a Society that is ambitious, inclusive, and socially responsible.