- Representatives from 35 government Space Agencies spoke about regulatory frameworks to protect space
Global policymakers, governments, industry, academia, and emerging space players from the public and private sectors attended the second and final day of The Abu Dhabi Space Debate (ADSD), continuing to debate critical issues, such as space governance and global collaboration, and the opportunities to protect the future of space.
Prominent attendees on the second day included H.E. Omran Sharaf, Assistant Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA); H.E Salem Butti Al Qubaisi, Director General, UAE Space Agency; H.E. Salem Humaid Al Marri, Director General, Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Center (MBRSC); and H.E. Dr. Eng. Mohammed Nasser Alahbabi, Senior Advisor, Space and Cyber Technologies, EDGE.
Other notable participants included Hiroshi Yamakawa, President, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency; Teodoro Valente, President, Italian Space Agency; Dr. Tidiane Ouattara, President, African Space Council; Dr. Sherif Mohammed Sedky, CEO, Egyptian Space Agency; Sergey Krikalev, Executive Director for Human Space Flights, ROSCOSMOS; Jonathan Hung, Executive Director, Office for Space Technology and Industry, Singapore (OSTIn); Tim Marshall, Foreign Affairs and Geopolitics Writer; Karim Sabbagh, Managing Director, Space42; Max Haot, CEO, Vast; Dr. Mariel Borrowitz, Director of International Space Situational Awareness Engagement, Office of Space Commercials; Robbie Schingler, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Planet Labs; Daniel Ceperley, COO and Co-Founder, LeoLabs; and Prof. Neil Morisetti, Vice Dean (Public Policy), Faculty of Engineering Sciences, University College London.
Throughout the day, panels and keynote sessions discussed pressing topics related to space, including strategies to encourage international collaboration, responsible knowledge transfer, and enabling emerging markets. The discussions built on the first day’s focus to mitigate the overuse of space and ensure its benefits are accessible to all nations. The day concluded with a youth trial court that encouraged the next generation of leaders to set the future of space advancements.
The second day of the debate identified notable insights, including:
• In a panel titled “Navigating New Frontiers: Are the UN’s Rules and Space Treaties Ready for the 21st Century?”, Teodoro Valente, President, Italian Space Agency impressed upon the need for space to remain a shared resource for all, highlighting the need for space treaties, regulations and frameworks to evolve to address modern challenges including the growth of satellites and constellations, the commercialization of space and the potential for lunar resource extraction.
• Speaking on the panel “Governance for the Future: Ensuring Space as a Shared Resource for Generations to Come”, H.E Omran Sharaf, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs emphasized the need for nations to strike a balance between national interests and global collaboration by highlighting how nations must serve their own interests, while recognizing the complexity of space exploration.
• H.E. Salem Humaid AlMarri, Director General, Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) spoke on a panel titled: “Amplifying Emerging Market Voices in Shaping the Global Space Dialogue”. He highlighted the UAE as a prime example for forging international partnerships to develop core capabilities, citing the milestone achievements of MBRSC in developing space systems and capabilities locally, including for the anticipated MBZ-SAT, the most advanced satellite in the region, which is expected to be launched soon. AlMarri also spoke of the critical applications of satellites to gather data and intelligence from space to aid key players in making informed decisions.
• Tim Marshall, the author of Future of Geography: How Power and Politics in Space Will Change Our World, said: “Competition can be healthy, but I fear that sometimes the competition can be too much, and this is such a hard environment, and the way ahead is through cooperation; a mixed healthy competition. It is useful to understand the geography of space, then it makes it easier to understand why we are doing what we are doing.”
• Speaking on a panel discussion titled “Decentralized Space Situational Awareness: Balancing Free Access and National Security in Space”, H.E Dr. Eng Mohammed Nasser Alahbabi, Senior Advisor, Space and Cyber Technologies at EDGE stressed on the growing need for enhanced space situational awareness for governments and national security in mitigating the risk of collisions and operational conflicts and the role it plays in facilitating collaboration between nations and commercial operators.
Key sponsors of the second edition of the ADSD include EDGE Group; one of the world's leading advanced technology and defense, Thales; world leading defense, digital identity, security, aerospace, and space group; Viasat for satellite communication and network technologies; VAST; commercial space station developer, BlackSky, the leading company in real-time space-based intelligence, Planet Labs; a leading provider of global, daily satellite imagery and geospatial solutions, and the Department of Culture and Tourism - Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi).