Cynthia Couette and Jean-Frédéric Morin recognised for research on space debris governance

Congratulations to PhD scholar Cynthia Couette and Honorary Professor Jean-Frédéric Morin on receiving the Best Scientific Contribution by the Centre de recherche en droit public (CRDP) (Research Centre in Public Law) for their paper, The Missing Ingredients for a Polycentric Governance System of Orbital Debris, published in Global Environmental Politics (MIT Press).

In this paper, the authors assess the viability of a polycentric governance system to address the urgent environmental problem of space debris in Earth’s orbit.

Abstract

The pollution of Earth’s orbits by debris represents a pressing environmental problem. Recognizing that geopolitical factors hinder the adoption of a multilateral solution, several experts advocate for a polycentric governance system, inspired by Elinor Ostrom’s work. This article assesses the viability of such a proposal. It finds that the global network of space organizations exhibits some of the structural characteristics of a polycentric system. However, arrangements concluded among these organizations fail to promote sustainability norms, and interviews with key stakeholders reveal the absence of several favorable factors for a sustainable polycentric governance system. The article concludes that a polycentric structure alone does not guarantee the emergence of sustainable governance. As orbital space is a relatively “easy case” for applying polycentricity theory to the global commons, this research serves as a reminder about the limitations of polycentric approaches in global environmental politics.

To learn more, explore their capsule, where they summarise the problem of space debris, the polycentric solution advocated by several experts and what their research reveals.