Mentoring the Next Generation: Impact Monitor 2 at the IFAR X Early Career Network X Challenge in Montréal, Canada

This April, the National Research Council Canada (NRC) hosted this year’s IFAR X Early Career Network (ECN) X Challenge final event in Montréal, and the Impact Monitor 2 (IM2) coordination team was right at the heart of it.

Our colleagues from DLR - Institute of System Architectures in Aeronautics, Helen Szöke-Erös as IFAR ECN Chair and Prajwal Shivaprakasha as Mentor, took on pivotal roles to guide 16 young experts from 13 international organizations through the complexities of Digital Cross-Organization Collaboration and Multi-Disciplinary Design and Optimization (MDO)—core pillars of the Impact Monitor 2 project.

The event was a dynamic mix of technical sessions, facility tours, and high-level networking. A key highlight was the presentation of Impact Monitor 2, where we showcased how our project serves as a successful blueprint for achieving Flightpath 2050 goals through the adoption of digital MDO practices.

We don't just monitor the future—we empower the experts who will build it.