The Montreal Declaration 2014

The Montreal Declaration on Global Space Governance

The 2nd Manfred Lachs International Conference on Global Space Governance, held at McGill University, in Montreal, Canada, on 29-31 May 2014:

Having brought together over 120 experts from 22 countries (space-faring and non-space faring nations) involved in various aspects of space activity and regulation;

Having served as an objective venue for the conduct of international and interdisciplinary deliberations on different aspects and perspectives of global space governance;

Recognizing that the current global space governance system that was created during the 1960s and 1970s has not been comprehensively examined by the international community since its establishment;

Recognizing that the concept of global governance is comprehensive and includes a wide range of codes of conduct, confidence building measures, safety concepts, international institutions, international treaties and other agreements, regulations, procedures and standards;

Noting that numerous developments have occurred in the world in general, and the space sector in particular, with serious implications for current and future space activities and for the sustainable use of space for peaceful purposes for the benefit of all humankind (i.e. the global public interest in outer space),

Believing that the time has come to assess the efficacy of the current regime of global space governance and to propose an appropriate global space governance system that addresses current and emerging concerns;

HEREBY resolves by consensus to:

1. call upon civil society, academics, governments, the private sector and other stakeholders to consider establishing a Working Group to prepare for and convene  an international conference to deliberate and agree upon recommendations to governments and relevant international organizations aimed at the establishment of a global governance regime for peaceful and sustainable space exploration, use and exploitation for the benefit of all humankind;

2. ensure that the proposed international conference is held as soon as possible with global participation by all key stakeholders (i.e., state and non-state actors) including: international intergovernmental organizations; relevant regional organizations; non-governmental organizations; appropriate state ministries (departments) and space agencies; academic institutions; appropriate commercial enterprises; and concerned individuals;

3. call upon the McGill University Institute of Air and Space Law to take the lead in initiating, completing and broadly distributing through all forms of media, an international interdisciplinary study that examines drivers of space regulations and standards prior to, and in support of, the proposed international conference, targeting a global audience;

4. ensure that the above-mentioned study examines, inter alia:
   
   a) changing global economic, political and social conditions and space infrastructure dependence;
   b) identification and assessment of all known space threats;
   c) space opportunities and the need for sustainable and peaceful use, exploration and exploitation of space for all humankind;
   d) safety, technical and operational gaps to be filled; and
   e) appropriate space governance standards, regulations, arrangement, agreements and institutions relevant to current and emerging issues of space activities.

Done in Montreal, this thirty-first day of May 2014.