“International space law making is at a crossroads: to ensure space doesn’t become the next setting of a Wild West gold rush, the international community must decide if it should come together to create legal frameworks that both enable and keep in check the space industry and the states that support them.”
Timiebi Aganaba-Jeanty on opportunities for improved governance in outer space
Despite common conceptions, outer space isn’t the lawless, ungoverned frontier people might think it is, according to CIGI’s Timiebi Aganaba-Jeanty. In fact, the governance of outer space has been in development since the space race began in the 1960s and 1970s. But much still needs to be defined, says Aganaba-Jeanty in her opinion piece “Innovative Instruments for Space Governance,” and improving the relationship between national and international space law is essential.
CIGI is rapidly exploring new work in this area around developing an international framework to address these critical gaps in governance. There is a clear need for a flexible and multilateral approach, especially with the growing concerns over space sustainability and security, including cyberattacks on space-based network infrastructure.