How can we engage, empower, and mobilize younger generations to get involved with lunar governance?

Within the next decade, humanity will establish a long-term presence on the Moon. What was once science-fiction will become reality. As we race closer to this inevitable moment, however, there is a growing list of unanswered questions: What will our presence look like? What activities should be allowed? How will those activities be governed? Who will be responsible? We have a duty to answer these questions now in order to ensure the security of future generations—they will have to deal with the consequences of our actions today. In order to do this effectively, we have to engage, empower, and mobilize younger generations. But, how? What lessons can we draw from other youth-led global advocacy and political movements?

In this Moon Dialogs' research salon, we explored these questions by examining the Lunar Governance Report recently released by the Space Generation Advisory Council and developed over the course of a year by its E.A.G.L.E. (Effective and Adaptive Governance for a Lunar Ecosystem) Action Team. During the salon, we also identified effective strategies carried out by the climate movement that can be applied to the challenge of lunar governance.

Panelists:

Mehak Sarang, Lunar Exploration Projects Lead, MIT Space Exploration Initiative

Antonino Salmeri, Lead of SGAC’s E.A.G.L.E. Team and Doctoral Research in Space Law at the University of Luxembourg

Ava Hedeker, Founder, Editor-in-chief, and Head of Social Media at F(earth)er Magazine, Youth Climate Activist