ABOUT THIS EVENT
While States seek new military capabilities in outer space, there are still very few established norms to govern military space activities. This leaves open many possibilities for misjudgment, miscalculation and even escalation.
Co-organized by the Space Court Foundation and Secure World Foundation, the panel discussion is a discussion with the U.K. Ambassador Aidan Liddle and a panel of leading space security experts about a new initiative at the U.N. to seek new norms that reduce threats to stability in space.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Aidan Liddle, UK Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva. He was appointed Ambassador and UK Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament in July 2018. He joined the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in 2003 (now the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office). During the course of his career he has served as Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy in Stockholm; Deputy Head of the EU Internal Department, Head of the Southern Africa Section and Private Secretary to the Permanent Under Secretary in London; Head of Press and Public Affairs at the British High Commission in Islamabad; and attaché for consumer affairs at the UK’s Mission to the EU in Brussels, during the UK’s Presidency of the EU in 2005.
MODERATOR
Daniel Porras is the Director of Strategic Partnerships and Communications at the Secure World Foundation. Previously, Mr. Porras was the Space Security Fellow at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research, where he focused on political and legal issues surrounding space security. His main focus has been on the progressive development of sustainable norms of behavior for space activities. Mr. Porras conducted research on the emergence of new technologies and approaches to strategic stability in outer space. He was the resident technical expert for multiple UN bodies working on space security issues, including the Group of Governmental Experts on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space. Mr. Porras’ areas of expertise include international space law and policy, emerging technology threats, international law, and political science.
PANELISTS
Dr. Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan
Dr. Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan is a Distinguished Fellow & Head of the Nuclear and Space Policy Initiative, at Observer Research Foundation. She is also the senior Asia defence writer for The Diplomat.
Dr. Rajagopalan joined ORF after a five-year stint at the National Security Council Secretariat (2003-2007), where she was an Assistant Director. She has also been invited to speak at international fora including the UN COPUOS (Vienna), Conference on Disarmament (Geneva), UNIDIR (Geneva), ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) and the European Union.
Victoria Samson
Victoria Samson is the Washington Office Director for Secure World Foundation and has twenty years of experience in military space and security issues.
Before joining SWF, Ms. Samson served as a Senior Analyst for the Center for Defense Information (CDI), where she leveraged her expertise in missile defense, nuclear reductions, and space security issues to conduct in-depth analysis and media commentary.
Alexandra Stickings
Alexandra Stickings is Research Fellow for Space Policy and Security within the Military Sciences team at RUSI. Her research interests include military space, space warfare, counterspace capabilities and international space programmes.
Prior to joining RUSI she worked in a variety of fields including central and local government, as well as the private sector.
Jessica West
Jessica West is a Senior Researcher with Project Ploughshares. Dr. West serves as managing editor for the Space Security Index project as part of a larger research and policy focus on technology, security, and governance. She holds a PhD in global governance and international security studies from the Balsillie School of International Affairs, Wilfrid Laurier University. Her research is focused on the emergence and evolution of resilience-based policies for national security in the United Kingdom, United States, and Canada.
The Space Court Foundation is a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit corporation that promotes and supports space law and policy education and the rule of law. The Space Court Foundation produces educational materials and scholarship through the administration of two major projects: Stellar Decisis and the Space Court Law Library Project. The Foundation engages in partnerships and collaborations that help grow greater awareness of space law and how disputes in space may be resolved as humans venture further from Earth in the not too distant future.
