The 2018 Conference

NASA: Artist impression of the SLS Launch, bound for Mars (dhitt)
NASA: Artist's impression of the SLS Launch, bound for Mars (dhitt)

Thank you to everyone who participated and made the event a major success. Please check back for updates coming soon.

How can we develop space without preventing future generations from continuing with their own development?

We are pleased to introduce the The Outer Space Institute, a highly interdisciplinary and international institute dedicated to space studies. The institute is a hub for subject matter experts in space, spanning a wide range of fields and producing interdisciplinary research in ways that have not been possible within the limited sights of specializations. In particular, the institute brings together perspectives from planetary scientists, political scientists, technologists, sociologists, international law experts, medical researchers, and policy and business advocates.

This November 16th, a team of international experts will convene to address two immediate near-term challenges in the sustainable development of space: space mining and orbital debris. The conference will include an open half-day discussion and Q&A on the topics of asteroid mining, space debris, space colonization, and Canadian space policy.

Following the public event, there will be a closed-door meeting to help shape the initial direction of the institute.

If you would like to attend the free public event, we kindly request that you RSVP here.

Schedule, November 16th at East Sage

  • 11:00 AM - 12:15 AM. Space Debris
    Moderator:
    David Kendall (former Chair of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space)
    Discussants:
    Moriba K. Jah (University of Texas, Austin)
    James Clay Moltz (US Naval Postgraduate School)
    Jennifer Busler (MDA/Maxar)
  • 12:15 PM - 1:00 PM: Lunch
  • 1:00 PM - 2:15 PM: Space Mining
    Moderator:
    Aaron Boley (UBC)
    Discussants:
    Sara Russell (Natural History Museum, London, UK -- by Skype)
    Timiebi Aganaba-Jeanty (Arizona State University)
    Catherine Johnson (UBC)
  • 2:15 PM - 3:30 PM: Space Colonization
    Moderator:
    Michael Byers (UBC)
    Discussants:
    Tanya Harrison (Arizona State University)
    Jeffery C. Chancellor (Texas A&M University)
    David Beers (UBC)
  • 3:30 PM - 3:45 PM: Coffee/Tea
  • 3:45 PM - 5:00 PM: Canadian Space Policy
    Moderator:
    Ryder McKeown (University of Toronto and the DND)
    Discussants:
    Mac Evans (former President of the Canadian Space Agency)
    Marie Lucy Stojak (Chair of the Space Advisory Board -- by Skype)
    Paul Meyer (SFU, former Canadian ambassador for disarmament)