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Secure World Foundation Newsletter
August 2023
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Insight - Launch of the Astra Carta Framework
by Dr. Peter Martinez, SWF Executive Director
On the 28th of June, 2023, His Majesty King Charles III welcomed leaders of the global space community, astronauts, aerospace executives, scientists, and environmentalists to a Space Sustainability Event at Buckingham Palace, where he launched the Astra Carta, a framework intended to encourage the private sector to embrace the principles of sustainability in space. To mark the launch of the Astra Carta framework, the King unveiled the Astra Carta seal, designed by Sir Jony Ive, as a visual representation of the ambitions of the Astra Carta. Read more.
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Announcements
SWF Young Professional Scholarship Recipients Announced
SWF is pleased to announce the recipients of the Dr. Michael Simpson Scholarship for travel funding to attend and present their papers at the 2023 International Astronautical Congress in Baku, Azerbaijan. The recipients are: Natalia Indira Vargas Cuentas from Peru, Jodie Howlett from the U.K., Tanushri Dinesh Joshi from India, Daniel Patton from the U.S., and Scott Anthony Schneider from Australia. Read more.
SWF Advisor Awarded Fellowship to Advance Research on Latin American Space Programs
Laura Delgado López, a member of the SWF Advisory Committee, has been awarded a Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) International Affairs Fellowship for 2023-2024. This fellowship will build on her experiences as a SWF program manager and her research during her Master’s program at GW’s Space Policy Institute, which examined Sino-Latin American space cooperation. Laura will research Latin American space actors' bilateral and regional partnership choices. Her work will focus on an overlooked aspect of international partnership strategies: that nations in the region are making individual strategic calculations when making partnership decisions that advance their space activities. In examining the interplay of domestic and international considerations driving the decisions of Latin American space nations, Laura’s work seeks to contribute to a more profound understanding of the needs and interests of these actors, providing insights to inform more effective engagement strategies in the future. Laura will conduct her fellowship at the Americas Program of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a leading think tank in Washington, DC. We congratulate her on this remarkable achievement and look forward to a richer understanding of these strategies for international collaboration in the future.
SWF Job Posting: Part-time Finance Manager
Secure World Foundation (SWF), a 501(c)3 non-profit operating foundation, is seeking a part-time (10 – 15 hours per week) Finance Manager to maintain sound fiscal practices, systems of internal control, and effective coordination and utilization of resources that support the SWF activities. Join our small, but ambitious team working to encourage the development of the international “rules of the road” for satellites and activities that use our shared, near-Earth outer space. Learn more.
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Publications
SWF Released 2023 Fact Sheets on Anti-Satellite Testing, Military and Intelligence RPOs, and the X-37B
The continued proliferation of counterspace capabilities and resurgence of anti-satellite (ASAT) testing in space and growth in robotic rendezvous and proximity operations (RPOs) conducted for military and intelligence purposes have generated concerns from many countries about the increasingly contested nature of space. While many RPO activities are not directly aggressive or destructive themselves, they can lead to misconceptions or heightened tensions that could negatively impact space security and stability. Additionally, destructive ASAT tests have created thousands of pieces of orbital debris over the last several decades, which can pose long-term risks to all space activities. The Secure World Foundation has released the 2023 edition of multiple fact sheets documenting these activities, based on research conducted as part of the annual SWF Global Counterspace Capabilities Report. Read more.
SWF Partners with SpaceWatch.Global for Space Café Radio Episode
SpaceWatch.Global’s Dr. Emma Gatti spoke with Tim Maclay, the chief strategy officer and US general manager at ClearSpace, for an episode of Space Café Radio. During this conversation, they built upon discussions started at SWF’s 5th Summit for Space Sustainability about why debris-causing ASAT tests are so destabilizing and Tim explains why it’s best not to intentionally create debris. View this engaging conversation here.
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Staff Activities and Presentations
June 28, 2023
SWF Participates in the Global Leaders on Space Sustainability Symposium and Royal Reception
Secure World Foundation’s Executive Director, Peter Martinez, and Director of Space Applications Programs, Krystal Azelton attended the Global Leaders on Space Sustainability Symposium and Royal Reception in London, United Kingdom. The objective of this event was to catalyze a framework to drive sustainability in space and outline how the private sector can work with governments to deliver.
As part of the event, Dr. Martinez moderated a panel on ‘The Importance of Working Together Globally on Space Sustainability’ which featured Dr. Meganne Christian from European Space Agency Astronaut Group, Dr. Alice Bunn OBE from UKSpace and Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Dr. Hiroshi Yamakawa from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Niklas Hedman from the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), and George Freeman MP from the UK government.
For more information on the launch of the Astra Carta, which took place at the Royal Reception, please see our August insight piece.
July 4-6, 2023
SWF Participates in the Annual SpaceTide Conference
SWF Director of Space Applications Programs Krystal Azelton and Director of Private Sector Programs Ian Christensen attended and spoke at the annual SPACETIDE Conference in Tokyo, Japan. Ms. Azelton moderated a panel session on "APAC's Satellite Applications for Solving Socio-economic Challenges and Creating New Market Opportunities," which discussed the diverse range of services and applications being provided through space across the APAC region and the challenges the sector faces in communicating the value of these applications to encourage adoption. Mr. Christensen moderated a panel session on "Proceeding Cislunar Architecture Formation and Sustainability," which discussed the ecosystem element and services necessary to build a sustained economic activity in cislunar space, and how sustainability and responsibility fit into that. Ms. Azelton and Mr. Christensen also participated in a pre-conference workshop on the space industry ecosystem in the APAC region, where Mr. Christensen moderated a discussion session covering the various understandings and definitions of the term 'space economy."
July 19, 2023
SWF Presents to a NASA Precollege Summer Institute Group on Space Sustainability
SWF Washington Office Director Victoria Samson gave a virtual presentation on space sustainability to students in NASA's Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP)’s Precollege Summer Institute (PSI). This group of high school students from traditionally underrepresented and underserved communities was based in Tennessee and was part of an effort by NASA to attract high school students to STEM, encourage them to go into college STEM degree programs, and eventually enter STEM careers. Ms. Samson gave an overview of policy and governance issues affecting space sustainability. Her presentation can be found here.
July 28, 2023
SWF Participates in RSIS Seminar on Space Security
SWF Washington Office Director Victoria Samson participated in a webinar titled, “Whither Space Security? Reducing Space Threats and Preventing an Arms Race in Outer Space,” sponsored by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Her presentation gave an overview of global counterspace capabilities; she then participated in a panel discussion which examined the nature of threats and ways in which to mitigate them. Her presentation can be found here.
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Click here for the latest SWF media appearances.
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Two months removed from the 5th Summit for Space Sustainability, we still reflect on the critical conversations, presentations, and innovative ideas exchanged there. As we continue our work towards more sustainable activities in space, these conversations and presentations remain relevant and inspirational. If you couldn’t attend or want to revisit a few crucial moments, you can find recordings of every moment on our YouTube channel. Access the complete playlist here.
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