Report from the 2022 ECSL Summer Course on Space Law and Policy
The 2022 ECSL Summer Course on Space Law and Policy took place in Lisbon, Portugal from 22 August to 2 September 2022 at the Nova School of Law. During the two-week course, 45 students and 7 young professionals got the opportunity to receive an extensive introduction to space law and policy related issues by expert lecturers from all over the world. The Summer Course participants also engaged in a group project applying their newfound knowledge to a simulation of a United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN COPUOS) session debating a potential draft text of a resolution on the topic of space resources utilisation and exploitation.
This year marked the 30th edition of the Summer Course and had 52 participants from over 20 nationalities, as well as 6 tutors assisting the ECSL Executive Secretariat in the organisation of the course. The ECSL organised the course in collaboration with the local co-organiser Nova School of Law. The local partners and sponsors were the Space Law Research Centre (SPARC), the Portuguese Space Agency (Portugal Space), the Portuguese National Regulatory Authority for Telecommunications - Autoridade Nacional de Comunicações (ANACOM) and the leading law firm in Portugal Vieira de Almeida & Associados (VdA).
An intense course: 37 lecturers – 50 lectures
This year’s course focused on multiple themes such as the use of space technology in support maritime safety, national activities in connection with space law and international cooperation between institutions. With its prolific view towards the Atlantic Ocean, Lisbon was the appropriate location to be addressing issues regarding maritime safety and learning about the benefits of space for sea traffic management.
Regional Developments in Portugal and Spain – an afternoon at VdA
At the beginning of the course, the participants received an introduction into the main sources of international space law and learned about the building blocks of national legislation. On the first evening, all participants got the chance to experience traditional Portuguese cuisine during a hosted dinner by Portugal Space. On the second day of the course, VdA hosted the participants to an afternoon event focusing on the recent developments in space law and cooperation from a Portuguese and Spanish perspective, featuring leading experts from legal practice, industry, government and academia who debated on the interplay between various actors and the recent national legal developments.
The use of earth observation in practice – a trip to the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA)
On Wednesday, the participants delved into the different aspects of launching activities and insurance of space missions. Furthermore, the group project for this year’s course was announced and the participants were allocated into small groups. Each group received materials & information about a specific country they should represent as delegates at a session of UN COPUOS that discusses a draft text of a potential resolution on space resources. Afterwards, the tutors and local organisers prepared the annual scavenger hunt for the participants, showing them the city of Lisbon and challenging them to a couple of team-building activities.
On Thursday, the lectures focused on providing the participants with the legal background of understanding a series of practical presentations by scientists on the use of earth observation satellites, hosted at the headquarters of EMSA. Not only did the participants receive preparatory legal lectures but were able to see the EMSA’s maritime control room in action. The lectures on Friday delved into telecommunications law and cybersecurity, as well as the protection of personal data.
Visit to Sintra & Start of week 2
On Saturday, the participants joined in the optional activity of visiting the National Palace of Sintra, a UNESCO World Heritage historic town close to Lisbon full of medieval castles and architecture. On Monday, a variety of expert lecturers joined the course discussing the interplay between regional, governmental, and private actors, focusing on the European Space Agency and its legal framework, export control issues and the global space economy. The day ended with a panel discussion on the different synergies & strategies used in the interplay between different stakeholders in the space sector. On Tuesday, the participants heard inputs from different career perspectives in international organisations, in the academic sector, as well as personal records from former ESA YGTs in the Legal Services Department. Furthermore, the new ECSL student representative for 2022-2023 was voted on. On Wednesday, the lectures were dedicated to emerging challenges in the space sector such as space debris mitigation, space resource exploitation as well as sustainability in outer space activities.
The-Group Project: Model UN COPUOS Simulation
On Thursday, the judges of the Model UN COPUOS simulation were already present and supporting the participants in their last preparations for the group project. Jenni Tapio, Chief Specialist at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland and delegate to the UN COPUOS Legal and Scientific Subcommittee, Professor Sergio Marchisio, former Chair of the UN COPUOS Legal Subcommittee and Michael Newman, Legal Officer at the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs not only held lecturers on the broad theme of international space cooperation, but answered questions that the participants had pertaining to their different backgrounds and legal expertise. The judges were present during the simulation on Friday when a team of participants chaired the session with 14 country “delegations” present debating on the text of a draft resolution.
The following participants received special mentions and awards:
Best Position Paper: India (Iris Stavroula Iordanidou, Melanie Ruiz Catala, Alejandra Martinez Perea)
Best Team: China (Filip Kocián, Guilherme Almeida, Scott Scoular, Tomas de Brito Paulo)
Best Oralist: Eilika Gauhl
Honourable mentions for the following delegates: Delphine Urbah, Matilde Silva, Alexandra Schulz
Best Meme: Dylan Breyne
More information about the ECSL Summer Course 2023 will be made available in due time. If you are interested in participating as either a participant or as a tutor, please mark your calendars for spring 2023 when the application procedure will open.
More information on the general selection criteria can be found here: https://www.esa.int/About_Us/ECSL_-_European_Centre_for_Space_Law/ECSL_Summer_Course_on_Space_Law_and_Policy
