Some people talk about chasing a dream. Colonel Jeremy Hansen actually flew there — 406,771 kilometers from Earth, farther than any human being in history, to see the far side of the Moon with his own eyes.

Jeremy’s story is a decades-long case study in what it takes to turn an audacious goal into reality, something he explores in depth in his keynote, “Achieving Your Moonshot: Turning Audacious Dreams into Action”.

Jeremy’s Journey to the Moon

Jeremy’s journey to the moon began at age 12, when he joined the 614 Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron in London, Ontario. By 16 he had earned his Air Cadet glider pilot wings in Trenton, Ontario, and a year later, his private pilot’s licence.

That early aviation training led him to join the military, beginning his university studies and training at the Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean in 1994. He later attended the Royal Military College of Canada, where he built the technical foundation for everything that followed: a bachelor of science in space science with first-class honours, followed by a master’s degree in physics. From there, Jeremy became a fighter pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force, logging years of high-stakes operational flying.

In 2009, Jeremy was one of just two Canadians selected in the Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA) national astronaut recruitment campaign. After completing his training in 2011, he began working at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston on assignment with the CSA. He served as a Mission Control capcom, the critical voice between the ground and the International Space Station, while taking on increasingly senior roles within the astronaut corps. He trained underwater at NASA’s Aquarius habitat off the Florida coast, lived underground for six days in Sardinian caves as part of the European Space Agency’s CAVES program, and by 2017, he was leading NASA’s astronaut training class — the first Canadian to do so.

Fourteen years after he was selected, that resume earned him a seat on the most ambitious mission of his career.

The Moonshot, Realized

In 2023, Jeremy was named a mission specialist on the Artemis II crew, which launched on April 1, 2026 and returned to Earth after a 10-day lunar flyby on April 10, 2026, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. This mission was a defining moment for space exploration — marking the first time in more than 50 years humans flew to the Moon.

It was a historic mission for several reasons. Jeremy, alongside crewmates Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, travelled more than 1.1 million kilometres around the Moon and back, farther than any humans in history, breaking the distance record set by Apollo 13. They also became the first people to see the entire far side of the Moon with their own eyes and to witness a solar eclipse from the Moon. Describing the moment from space, Jeremy told NBC News simply: “Right away, you are humbled.”

With this mission, Jeremy also became the first Canadian, and the first non-American, to travel to the Moon. Going from a kid staring up at the stars to the far side of the Moon didn’t happen by accident. In his visually stunning and deeply personal keynote — featuring breathtaking video and imagery — he brings audiences behind the scenes of his journey, sharing the intense planning, rigorous training, and awe-inspiring reality of a lunar flyby.

Achieving Your Moonshot

Jeremy’s story isn’t just about space exploration — it is a blueprint for organizational excellence and your own life’s mission. He challenges audiences to realize that dreaming alone won’t get you to the finish line. Achieving a moonshot requires relentless daily action. By weaving his unique experiences with practical insights, he provides a framework to help leaders, teams, and individuals identify their goals and leverage their inspiration to execute them. This includes how to:

• Set and share your vision: The critical first step of defining your moonshot, Jeremy illustrates the power of voicing your goals to others to build accountability, align teams, and generate unstoppable momentum.
• Navigate the unknown: Jeremy outlines a clear strategy for overcoming inevitable obstacles and high-pressure challenges.
• Harness the power of collaboration: Sharing stories from his own crew, Jeremy shows audiences how an abundance mindset — the belief that there’s enough room for everyone to succeed — turns generosity into the ultimate catalyst for innovation.

A New Chapter, Same Trajectory

On July 6, 2026, Jeremy announced he would step back from his full-time role at the Canadian Space Agency this September, transitioning instead to a reservist role with the Royal Canadian Air Force. He described the move not as a finish line but as a “deliberate launchpad,” leaving the door open for new ways to support Canada’s space sector.

Upon his announcement, Prime Minister Mark Carney thanked Jeremy for his “extraordinary service to Canada and his remarkable contributions to space exploration.”

“Colonel Hansen united millions of Canadians around a single mission and pushed the boundaries of what we believed was possible,” Carney said, wishing Hansen “the very best in the years ahead.”

Hire Col. Jeremy Hansen to Speak at Your Next Event

Colonel Jeremy Hansen‘s career proves that a moonshot isn’t a single leap — it’s days, months, and years of preparation, of small, deliberate steps, pointed at a single target. For executives steering organizations through change, or individuals chasing a personal breakthrough, Jeremy’s story and insights prove that dreaming is where it starts, but daily, deliberate action is what gets you to the Moon and back.

Contact us to learn more about Jeremy and how he will leave your audience equipped to do something every single day toward your ultimate goal.