Planetary Protection & Ethics

Dr. Aparna Venkatesan

Professor
Department of Physics and Astronomy
University of San Francisco

Aparna Venkatesan is a cosmologist working on studies of the first stars and quasars in the universe. She is currently a Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of San Francisco, and a former NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellow. She has been recognized nationally for her research and DEI leadership, receiving the USF Dean’s Scholar Award, the USF Arthur Furst Award for excellence in research for the betterment of humanity, and the (co-recipient of the) USF College of Arts and Sciences Collective Achievement Award for Supporting Women in STEM Fields. Aparna is deeply committed to increasing the participation and retention of underrepresented groups in astronomy and the sciences, and is active in developing scientific partnerships with Indigenous communities worldwide. Learn more about her work at: http://aparnavenkatesan.com/

Dr. Linda Billings

Linda Billings is a consultant to NASA’s astrobiology and planetary defense programs at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. She lives in Sarasota, Florida. Dr. Billings earned her Ph.D. in mass communication from Indiana University. Her research interests include science and risk communication, social studies of science, and the history and rhetoric of science and space exploration. She worked for more than 30 years in Washington, D.C., as a researcher; communication planner, manager, and analyst; policy analyst; journalist; and consultant to the government. Her papers have been published by the NASA History Division; Space Policy; Acta Astronautica; Advances in Space Research; the Bulletin of Science, Technology, and Society; Scientific American; Space Policy; Space News; The Space Review; Theology & Science; Biological Theory; and Futures.  She was the first senior editor for space at Air & Space/Smithsonian magazine (1986-88), founding editor of Space Business News (1983-85), and contributing author for First Contact: The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (1990), Societal Impacts of Space Flight (2007), NASA’s First 50 Years: Historical Perspectives (2010), Media, Spiritualities, and Social Change (2011), Space Shuttle Legacy: How We Did It and What We Learned (2013), The Impact of Discovering Life Beyond Earth (2015), and Social and Conceptual Issues I Astrobiology (2020). She is co-editor of a forthcoming volume from Oxford University Press, Reclaiming Space: Progressive and Multicultural Perspectives on Space Exploration.

Dr. Billings was a member of the staff for the National Commission on Space (1985-86), appointed during the Reagan administration to develop a long-term plan for space exploration.  She served as an officer of Women in Aerospace (WIA) for 15 years, most recently as president (2003). She is the recipient of a WIA Lifetime Achievement Award (2009) and a WIA Outstanding Achievement Award (1991). She was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2009.

Daniel Porras

Director of Strategic Partnerships and Communications at Secure World Foundation

Daniel Porras is the Director of Strategic Partnerships and Communications at the Secure World Foundation. He works to develop partnerships and conduct outreach for the development of sustainable norms of behavior in space. Mr. Porras is also a Non-Resident Fellow at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research, where he focuses on political and legal issues surrounding space security. Mr. Porras’ areas of expertise include international space law and policy, emerging technology threats, international law, and political science. His main focus is the progressive development of sustainable norms of behavior for space activities. He was the resident technical expert for multiple UN bodies working on space security issues, including the Group of Governmental Experts on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS) as well as Subsidiary Body 3 of the Conference on Disarmament (on PAROS). Mr Porras is a Board Member of the Space Court Foundation and a Member of the California Bar. He speaks English, French, Italian, and Spanish.

Joelle Renstrom

Senior Lecturer, Rhetoric
College of General Studies
Boston University

Joelle Renstrom is a writer living in Somerville, MA. Her collection of essays, Closing the Book: Travels in Life, Loss, and Literature, was published in August 2015. Joelle’s first foray into science/tech writing was in 2011 with the launch of her blog Could This Happen?, which explores the relationship between science and science fiction and won a 2012 Somerville Arts Council fellowship and a 2013 Writers’ Room of Boston Nonfiction fellowship. She has since received Somerville Arts Council fellowships in 2015 and 2018, as well as a journalist fellowship from the Gerontologist Society of America in 2019. Joelle’s work has appeared in The Daily Beast, Astrobiology, Slate, Aeon, The Guardian, The Washington Post, New Scientist, Undark, and others. She teaches writing and research at Boston University. Follow her on Twitter @couldthishappen.

The Troubling Rhetoric of Space Exploration 
Undark. Published March 18, 2021. Written by Joelle Renstrom.

Societal Impact of Spaceflight: “Spaceflight, Culture, and Ideology”
Written by Dr. Linda Billings.

Why Isn’t Outer Space a Global Commons?
Journal of National Security Law & Policy. Published June 3, 2021. Lead author John Goehring.

Pink dragons in orbit: Why unlikely threats present real challenges for space politics
Observer Research Foundation. Published June 6, 2019. Written by Daniel Porras.

Space Dossier 5: Alternative Approaches and Indicators for the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space
UNIDIR. Published May 2020. Contributing author Daniel Porras.

(Video) Security and Stability of Space: What you Need to Know 
Secure World Foundation. Published March 16, 2021. Moderator Daniel Porras.

(Infographic) Space Sustainability
Secure World Foundation.