The GSLC Hits the Ground Running in 2021: An Update on the Center’s Activities

The Global Space Law Center continues to be engaged in an exciting year of activity as our student-staffed Research Council takes part in multiple new initiatives and activities, including the launch of the Registration Project and the Council’s support of the recently constituted Global Expert Group for Sustainable Lunar Activities (GEGSLA). But we begin our report with the recent publication of a transcript of our March symposium on lunar law!

The Transcript of the Last Year’s Symposium on Lunar Law is Published! 

A transcript of the GSLC’s March 6, 2020 symposium on Returning to the Moon: Legal Challenges and Opportunities as We Begin to Settle the Solar System has now been published in a special issue of the Global Business Law Review that is dedicated to lunar law. The issue also features an article by Prof. Michelle Hanlon regarding the critical issue of the duty to operate with “due regard” in relation to the protection of historical sites on the Moon.

A New Article on Lunar Law Published 

GSLC Director Mark J. Sundahl recently published an article written jointly with his co-author, Prof. Tanja Masson-Zwaan, about the current state of Lunar Legal Landscape, including hard law as well as soft law on both international and domestic levels. The article goes on to explain how  current initiatives, that are just now taking shape, will supplement existing law. At the end, the authors recommend steps that could be taken to improve the lunar legal landscape in both the near term and the longer term. Please contact Prof. Sundahl at m.sundahl@csuohio.edu for more information.

The Registration Project

The GSLC has partnered with the Moon Village Association in launching the Registration Project – a think-tank created to help solve the shortcomings in the current law and practice of registering space objects under the Registration Convention. The Project has a compact timeline and intends to come forward with its recommendations in a White Paper.  From India to China, North and South America to Europe, the 25 members of the Project provide a rich array of perspectives and interests as we take on this important topic.

The GEGSLA has been Released!

The Global Expert Group on Sustainable Lunar Activities has just completed its membership selection process after receiving close to 200 expressions of interest. Prof. Mark J. Sundahl will be participating in the Group as a member and plans to involve the GSLC student-staffed Research Council, will be providing critical research and writing support to the Group. 

The purpose of the GEGSLA is to provide a neutral forum for multilateral discussions involving all stakeholders on pressing issues that face the international community as we return to the Moon. Such alternative platforms are of particular importance now due the fact that COPUOS is unable to meet. In addition to its members, the GEGSLA meetings will also welcome as observers to participate in the Group’s discussions. The GEGSLA membership includes a diverse collection of individuals from space agencies, industry, academia, and civil society (including NGOs). The first meeting of the GEGSLA will take place on February 25. Please keep an eye out for future GEGSLA public outreach programs!

Thanks for Everyone’s Interest in Mandl’s 1932 Monograph on Space Law!

The Space Law Research Guide has received more visits than ever following our announcement of Vladimir Mandl’s seminal book Das Weltraum-RechtEin Problem der Raumfahrt. The Center is fortunate to own one of the few remaining original copies of this groundbreaking work and is honored to share it with the public. If you haven’t laid eyes on this 1932 monograph, don’t deprive yourself any longer! It is a fascinating look back into the beginning of space law.

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