Mai’a K. Davis Cross’s expertise in space diplomacy broadly includes in-depth analyses of the drivers of international cooperation and competition in outer space exploration historically to today. We are on the cusp of a new Space Age, with the exponential growth of hundreds of public and private actors across the globe investing in and cultivating a permanent presence in space. Despite widespread rhetoric about Space Race 2.0, Professor Cross argues that we have a tremendous opportunity to work together across national boundaries when it comes to space. She has published a series of articles delving into how and why governmental and non-governmental actors have collaborated in the realm of space policy, including, “The Social Construction of the Space Race: Then and Now,” International Affairs and a 2023 double-length special issue on Space Diplomacy for the Hague Journal of Diplomacy.
Professor Cross regularly appears in media coverage on space, such as Vanity Fair, Vox, and USNews, and writes policy-oriented pieces highlighting the importance of space diplomacy to encourage cooperation rather than conflict in space. She has also been invited to speak to a range of policy, private sector, practitioner, and academic audiences about space diplomacy, including the Council on Foreign Relations, University of Washington, the Seattle Working Group on Space (SWAG), University of Leiden, and Duke University, among others. Here is a selection of recent interviews/commentary and articles on space:
The Hague Space Diplomacy Symposium, June 12, 2023.
“Why diplomacy is needed now to set rules for outer space,” Northeastern Global News, June 8, 2023.
“Space Diplomacy,” Hague Journal of Diplomacy Podcast, May 2023.
“Space Diplomacy: The Final Frontier of Theory and Practice,” Hague Journal of Diplomacy, May 2023.
“What Russia’s War Means for the International Space Station,” Video, Vox, April 13, 2022.
“Space Security & the Transatlantic Relationship,” 2022, Politics & Governance, 10(2).
“‘United Space in Europe’?: The European Space Agency and the EU Space Program,” 2021. European Foreign Affairs Review 26: 31-46.
“Outer Space and the Idea of the Global Commons,” 2021. International Relations (online first).
“The European Space & Intelligence Networks,” 2020. Journal of Transatlantic Studies 18 (2): 209-230
50 Years After Apollo, Trump wants the US back on the moon. What’s different?, USNews, 2019.
“The Social Construction of the Space Race: Then and Now,” International Affairs, 2019.
“Why We Don’t Understand What a Space Race Means,” Blog, OUPblog.com, December 7, 2019.
Mai'a Keapuolani Davis Cross 