SWF Statement – UN COPUOS, Exchange of Views: Space Sustainability, Disaster Management, and RF Interference (June 2014)

In this wide-ranging statement, Secure World Foundation outlines its global contributions across the UN COPUOS agenda. Major highlights include:

• Disaster mitigation and Earth observation: SWF organized and participated in events alongside UN-SPIDER, GEO, and CEOS to promote the use of space technology for disaster response. This included workshops in Mexico, Mesoamerica, and India focused on open-source geospatial tools, capacity building, and food security applications.
• Space debris and traffic management: Brian Weeden testified before the U.S. Congress on debris mitigation, active removal, and space traffic management, highlighting the importance of international coordination. Parallel events were held in China, Japan, and Australia to address these challenges.
• Youth development and education: SWF sponsored international young professionals to attend the IAC in Beijing and worked with the Space Generation Congress and CEOS on technical training workshops.
• Space security and governance: Through collaborations with UNIDIR, SWF co-organized conferences on space security and transparency, including a side event on the UN GGE on TCBMs. It also continued engagement with the African Leadership Conference and the Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology Education for Latin America and the Caribbean.
• Radiofrequency interference: The statement stresses the link between RF spectrum protection and space sustainability, referencing SWF’s educational materials and events like the RFI breakfast at the Space Symposium.

The statement concludes by affirming SWF’s role as a civil society partner and its ongoing commitment to supporting the Committee’s objectives and the UNISPACE III agenda.