SPACE POLICY
I am primarily interested in the intersection of science and law
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Sending humans to Mars has been a component of the official U.S. space policy of multiple presidential administrations.
Additional stakeholders with interests in visiting Earth’s terrestrial neighbor in the coming decades include private companies and the space agencies of additional space-faring nations. Numerous motivations exist for humans to explore and settle on the Martian surface including environmental suitability and species survival, the search for life, scientific and technological development, economic profitability, and fundamental human nature. However, the following existing legal regime deficiencies must be addressed if human settlement and sustainability on Mars is expected to become a reality: (1) national jurisdiction and responsibilities, (2) resource utilization, (3) conflict resolution and central authority, (4) environmental protection, (5) future settler legal status, and (6) social justice. In my paper titled Mars Land-Use Policy Implementation: Approaches and Best Methods, I examine the feasibility of various land-use policies applied to the Mars case by conducting a policy option evaluation. The assessment criteria I used in this evaluation were based on a literature review from which legal deficiencies have been identified, as well as the prioritization of current knowledge pertaining to Mars surface processes and mineralogy. The paper has been published in the journal Space Policy! CLICK HERE TO READ!