Simon Joel Kälin
Simon Joel Kälin is a Medical Engineering Student in the School of Medicine at Universität St.Gallen (HSG) and was chosen as a member of the Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2024.
Simon joined the HSG Entrepreneurial Talent Program in 2024 as a Medical Engineering Student. The program encourages students from all academic levels to work on innovative projects, with Startup@HSG supporting them in transforming their ideas into impactful innovations.
In 2024, he became a Global Shaper at Global Shaper Zurich and a Swiss Chapter Member at The Explorers Club. Global Shaper Zurich is a worldwide community of active changemakers across more than 500 local hubs. This organization is made up of individual groups empowered to drive change in their communities.
Founded in 1904 to promote exploration “by all means possible”, The Explorers Club is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing field research, scientific exploration, and the idea that it is vital to preserve the instinct to explore.
In the summer of 2021, Simon joined the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS) at their Advanced POSSUM Academy. In 2024, Simon joined the Microgravity Campaign, where they fly weightlessly on parabolic flights. The International Institute of Astronautical Sciences (IIAS) produces future scientists, engineers, operations professionals, and educators of the international space community through immersive educational experiences.
In 2022, Simon joined the SAR Team at @fire International Disaster Protection, a nonprofit aid organization that provides rapid emergency aid worldwide after devastating natural disasters.
In 2024, he was a Visiting Student for MLx Fundamentals on MLx Health & Bio at Oxford ML School. The MLx Fundamentals Course aims to offer a strong foundation in Machine Learning through a comprehensive training program that includes theory and practical sessions.
In 2023, Simon was a Medical Technology Intern at Universitätsspital Zürich, where he studied space sickness and weightlessness. As one of the largest and leading medical centers in Switzerland, the University Hospital Zurich (USZ) offers a wide range of medical services, from primary care to individualized cutting-edge medicine at an international level.
Since 2020, he has served in the CBRN units of the Swiss Army, was promoted to sergeant, and heads a Sampling and Identification of Biological, Chemical, and Radiological Agents (SIBCRA) unit. In 2023, he began his training for international peacekeeping missions at SWISSINT.
Simon was previously also an analog astronaut and was part of the Asclepios Space missions. They founded Asclepios, an independent association of the University of Lausanne, the first initiative of its kind in the world, made entirely by students for students, in collaboration with academic institutions, scientists, and industry
Their purpose was to simulate a lunar base in the old military fortress of Sasso San Gottardo, which, with its long underground tunnels, recalls the subsoil of the moon. To manage a functioning Mission Control Center and a team of six astronauts ready to face a period of isolation, the Asctepios team undergoes a long and difficult preparation process: extreme physical and psychological resistance training, medical tests, and group tasks.
For months on end, in their free time, they work hard to get ready for the mission. Simon joined the Science Team in 2021 and, in 2022 and 2023, worked on the core mission. Watch Simon in the Documentary on the Astronaut Training in Switzerland Raumfahrt Boom — von Mond-Mission Artemis über Astronauten-Training | Einstein | SRF Wissen.
Simon is also a rescue diver and is currently pursuing certification as a cave diver at Global Underwater Explorers, a nonprofit membership organization based in High Springs, Florida, United States. Since 2021, Simon has also been a Public Speaker for the Swiss Space Museum.
Simon earned his Bachelor’s Degree of Science in 2019 from Stiftsschule Einsiedeln with his thesis, Tissue Engineering – Cultured Meat, a practical and theoretical work. Read Tissue Engineering – Cultured Meat, eine praktische und theoretische Arbeit.
Visit his LinkedIn profile.