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The Latino Professionals In Aerospace (LPA) organization is preparing to host its third industry expo next month in Orlando, Florida. The event, scheduled for September 18 and 19 at the Signia by Hilton Bonnet Creek Hotel, is expected to draw more than 2,000 attendees from over 35 countries. Over 100 exhibitors and more than 10 guest speakers are also set to participate. Tickets for non-members are priced at $209, with discounts available for students and military personnel.
The expo aims to provide networking opportunities across various sectors of aviation while emphasizing representation, inclusion, and community. LPA describes the event as "a gathering of aviation’s future leaders, innovators, and champions, all under one roof, (...) marking a decade of excellence in uplifting Latino professionals in aerospace." According to LPA President Claudia Zapata-Cardone:
"A lesson that many of us learn is that the airplane doesn’t care about our gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, etc. Physics does not discriminate. Lift is still a combination of Bernoulli’s principle and Newton’s Laws of Motion. However, the human side of aviation is different. It isn’t the aircraft we have to navigate around. It’s the biases of our fellow pilots we have to deal with. It isn't the aircraft we have to navigate around. It's the biases of our fellow pilots we have to deal with. Coming from the Latino culture where family, community, and resilience are instilled in us, we lead with empathy, adapt quickly under pressure, and persevere through setbacks. This cultural view has made us calm, capable, and collaborative leaders, even in the face of doubt about our abilities."
