SWF Preprint: Space as a Global Commons? A Legal and Policy Perspective
Is space a global common?
The idea that outer space “belongs to all humanity” has shaped space policy debates since before the Space Age. But does that framing still hold under international space law and today’s geopolitical and commercial realities?
In this new preprint, Peter Martinez and Christopher D. Johnson examine how the concept of global commons has traditionally been defined and applied on Earth, then trace how commons language has appeared and faded in multilateral space governance documents. They argue that while international space law guarantees all states the freedom to access and use outer space, the domains of space themselves are not global commons or other fixed social constructs.
The authors show that commons narratives are mutable and not always linked to peaceful, sustainable, or prosperous outcomes. Rather than debating whether space is a global common, they suggest focusing on how states implement existing legal principles such as due regard, cooperation, non-interference, information sharing, and consultation in a changing space environment.
Access the peer-reviewed article via Frontiers in Space Technologies: https://doi.org/10.3389/frspt.2025.1723792
