Announcing the 8th Summit for Space Sustainability in Brasília, Brazil

We are thrilled to announce the 8th Summit for Space Sustainability,co‑hosted by the Secure World Foundation and the Brazilian Space Agency! It will convene senior leaders from government, industry, academia, and civil society in Brasília for focused dialogue on the long‑term sustainability, security, governance, and safety of space activities. This edition - the first to be held in Latin America and the Southern Hemisphere - spotlights regional perspectives and practical solutions that can inform and strengthen global norms. The Summit for Space Sustainability will explore how space systems underpin development priorities across Brazil and the wider Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region, and how inclusive governance can help ensure that space remains a safe, accessible, and sustainably managed domain for current and future generations. Join us on November 4-5, 2026, to delve into the ABCs of space sustainability for the country, the region, and the world! 

Why Latin America and the Caribbean

The LAC region brings distinctive opportunities and challenges to the global sustainability agenda:

• Critical reliance on space‑enabled services for environmental stewardship (Amazon, Cerrado, Pantanal), agriculture and food security, disaster risk reduction, maritime and border monitoring, and inclusive connectivity for remote communities.
• Diverse institutional capacities across countries, with many developing or updating national space frameworks and seeking practical pathways to implement international norms.
• Equity and access concerns related to spectrum, orbital slots, and data availability, where regional perspectives can enrich global conversations on responsible use and fair participation.

Brazil’s growing capabilities in Earth observation, satellite development, and launch infrastructure position it as a regional convener able to foster cooperative approaches and amplify Southern Hemisphere priorities within multilateral processes.

This Year’s ABC Themes

Aligning: Harmonizing National Ambitions with International Best Practices

As Brazil and other LAC nations expand space activities—from Earth observation and telecommunications to launch services—there is a paramount need to translate global sustainability norms into effective national policy and regulatory practice. This theme examines how countries can design and implement laws, licensing, standards, and incentives that reduce risks such as orbital congestion and debris, while also catalyzing local industry growth and safeguarding long‑term access to space. Discussion will surface practical models for aligning domestic ambitions with internationally recognized principles, and how regional experiences can inform and improve those global norms.

Benefiting: Delivering on the Promise of Space Applications

Space applications are central to sustainable development across the region—from tackling illegal deforestation and wildfires to enabling climate adaptation, precision agriculture, public health, education, and digital inclusion. Yet policy and market gaps often impede impact: fragmented procurement, limited data interoperability, uneven connectivity, and insufficient capacity to use space‑derived information in decision‑making. This theme focuses on closing the last‑mile gap between satellites and societal outcomes, highlighting approaches to improve data access and uptake, foster public‑private partnerships, and ensure that platform sustainability and equitable access are integral to service delivery. 

Cooperating: Advancing Shared Stewardship for Sustainability, Security, and Safety

In an increasingly multipolar and congested space environment, cooperation is a prerequisite for safety and sustainability. Building bridges between established and emerging space actors—within LAC and globally—can expand participation while strengthening transparency, interoperability, and confidence‑building measures. This theme explores regional and international mechanisms that enable information‑sharing, standards development, joint research, and coordinated operations (e.g., space situational awareness), and considers how LAC countries can bring inclusive governance perspectives to multilateral fora.

Designing: Policy Pathways for Optimal Outcomes

Space sustainability demands innovation not only in technology and operations but also in policy design. This theme delves into practical policy instruments—risk‑based licensing, performance‑based regulation, economic incentives, insurance and liability approaches, and stewardship benchmarks—that align commercial incentives with responsible behavior. It also considers lessons from other shared domains (oceans, atmosphere) to address tragedy‑of‑the‑commons dynamics and identify gaps where new or adapted governance tools are needed, tailored to the diverse capacities of national agencies and market actors.

Exploring: Ensuring Sustainable and Responsible Expansion Beyond Earth Orbit (Moon & Mars)

As lunar activities resume and ambitions for Mars exploration intensify, the global space community faces a pivotal opportunity to embed sustainability principles beyond Earth orbit from the outset.  This theme will examine how early identification of sustainability risks can inform responsible exploration strategies and will explore how design-for-sustainability approaches can be applied to lunar and planetary missions. The discussion will also address the evolving governance landscape, including the relationship between existing international space law, emerging initiatives related to lunar exploration, and the role of multilateral and inclusive forums. For Brazil and the wider Latin America and Caribbean region, this represents an opportunity to engage early in norm-shaping processes, contributing scientific expertise, policy perspectives, and diplomatic leadership even in the absence of flagship lunar or Martian missions. By emphasizing equity, transparency, and long-term stewardship, the region can help ensure that the expansion of human activities beyond Earth orbit advances in a manner that is sustainable, cooperative, and beneficial for present and future generations.

Together, SWF and AEB hope that this event will result in a shared regional agenda on space sustainability priorities that can feed into international deliberations, actionable recommendations for national policy and regulatory implementation, including model practices for licensing, debris mitigation, transparency, and data use, identification of cooperation opportunities (capacity‑building, data‑sharing frameworks, and regional SSA/STC collaboration), and a forward‑looking approach for sustainable lunar and Martian activities, including principles, voluntary practices, and avenues for inclusive participation.

‍Event Details

Date: November 4-5, 2026

Location: National Museum of the Republic (Museu Nacional da República)
Brasília, Brazil

Please see our event website for more details on young professional and student engagement, sponsorships and more!

‍About the Agência Espacial Brasileira (AEB) 

The Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), the central body of the National System for the Development of Space Activities (SINDAE), is a public agency under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), responsible for formulating, coordinating, and executing the Brazilian Space Policy. The goal of AEB is to advance the development of space systems and applications, promote Brazilian industry and the country's international presence in the space sector, and expand its impact on society.

Since its creation on February 10, 1994, the Agency has worked to support the Brazilian Government's efforts to promote the well-being of society through the sovereign use of the space sector.

‍