Space advocacy is supporting or advocating for a human use of

outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...

. Purposes advocated can reach from

space exploration Space exploration is the use of astronomy and space technology to explore outer space. While the exploration of space is carried out mainly by astronomers with telescopes, its physical exploration though is conducted both by uncrewed robo ...

, or

commercial use of space Commercial use of space is the provision of goods or services of commercial value by using equipment sent into Earth orbit or outer space. This phenomenon – aka Space Economy (or New Space Economy) – is accelerating cross-sector innovation ...

to even space settlement. There are many different individuals and

organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived f ...

s dedicated to space advocacy. They are usually active in educating the public on space related subjects, lobbying governments for increased funding in space-related activities or supporting private space activities. They also recruit members, fund projects, and provide information for their membership and interested visitors. They are sub-divided into three categories depending on their primary work: practice, advocacy, and theory.

History

The idea that space flight was possible and necessary was introduced by groups of thinkers, primarily members of the Russian, American, British, and German science communities, who formed in the 1920s the first advocacy groups. Starting in the 1930s, these groups began to share their individual plans for a future in space to their respective governments and the public. Influential books and other media began to emerge which included works containing illustrations by

Chesley Bonestell Chesley Knight Bonestell Jr. (January 1, 1888 – June 11, 1986) was an American painter, designer and illustrator. His paintings inspired the American space program, and they have been (and remain) influential in science fiction art and illustr ...

(based on

Wernher von Braun Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( , ; 23 March 191216 June 1977) was a German and American aerospace engineer and space architect. He was a member of the Nazi Party and Allgemeine SS, as well as the leading figure in the develop ...

's designs) such as ''

The Conquest of Space ''The Conquest of Space'' is a 1949 speculative science book written by Willy Ley and illustrated by Chesley Bonestell. The book contains a portfolio of paintings by Bonestell depicting the possible future exploration of the Solar System, with ...

'' (1949) and magazine articles including the "

Man Will Conquer Space Soon! "Man Will Conquer Space Soon!" was the title of a series of 1950s magazine articles in ''Collier's'' detailing Wernher von Braun's plans for manned spaceflight. Edited by Cornelius Ryan, the individual articles were authored by such space notables ...

" series of article in '' Colliers'' magazine between 1952 and 1954. Television shows included

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

's " Man in Space" and "

Man and the Moon "Man and the Moon" is an episode of ''Disneyland'', which originally aired on December 28, 1955. It was directed by Disney animator Ward Kimball. The show begins with a humorous look with a man's fascination with the Moon through animation. This ...

" in 1955, and " Mars and Beyond" in 1957.

Space movement

According to Mark Hopkins from the National Space Society, each space organization has a different priority and short-term objective, but all organizations share the ultimate goal of building space settlements. In 2004 most of the leading US non-profit space organizations joined together to form the Space Exploration Alliance. The Alliance was formed to "advocate for the exploration and development of outer space" to members of Congress. The Alliance organizes the annual Legislative Blitz to lobby members of Congress for space exploration, and every space enthusiast is encouraged to participate in the Legislative Blitz by calling, emailing, or personally visiting their Congressperson's office.

Decolonizing space

To reach a more inclusive spaceflight and

space science Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually conside ...

some organizations like the ''Justspace Alliance'' (see Lucianne Walkowicz) and IAU featured ''Inclusive Astronomy'' have been formed in recent years. Holding events like the

unconference An unconference is a participant-driven meeting. The term "unconference" has been applied, or self-applied, to a wide range of gatherings that try to avoid hierarchical aspects of a conventional conference, such as sponsored presentations and top ...

''Decolonizing Mars'' in 2018. Advocates of this issue see the need for inclusive and democratic participation and implementation of any space exploration, infrastructure or habitation. Questioning the decision making of and reasons for any colonial

space policy Space policy is the political decision-making process for, and application of, public policy of a state (or association of states) regarding spaceflight and uses of outer space, both for civilian (scientific and commercial) and military purposes. I ...

, labour and land exploitation with postcolonial critique. Private and state funded advocacy for

space colonization Space colonization (also called space settlement or extraterrestrial colonization) is the use of outer space or celestial bodies other than Earth for permanent habitation or as extraterrestrial territory. The inhabitation and territor ...

, specifically the rationales and politico-legal regimes behind

, like the "

New Frontier The term ''New Frontier'' was used by Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kennedy in his acceptance speech in the 1960 United States presidential election to the Democratic National Convention at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum as the ...

" slogan, have been criticized for applying

settler colonialism Settler colonialism is a structure that perpetuates the elimination of Indigenous people and cultures to replace them with a settler society. Some, but not all, scholars argue that settler colonialism is inherently genocidal. It may be enacted ...

and the

manifest destiny Manifest destiny was a cultural belief in the 19th-century United States that American settlers were destined to expand across North America. There were three basic tenets to the concept: * The special virtues of the American people and th ...

ideology, perpetuating imperialism and the narrative of colonial exploration as fundamental to the assumed

human nature Human nature is a concept that denotes the fundamental dispositions and characteristics—including ways of thinking, feeling, and acting—that humans are said to have naturally. The term is often used to denote the essence of humankind, or ...

. Participation and representation of humanity in space is an issue of human access to and presence in space ever since the beginning of

spaceflight Spaceflight (or space flight) is an application of astronautics to fly spacecraft into or through outer space, either with or without humans on board. Most spaceflight is uncrewed and conducted mainly with spacecraft such as satellites in ...

. Even though some rights of non-spacefaring countries to partake in spaceflight have been secured through international

space law Space law is the body of law governing space-related activities, encompassing both international and domestic agreements, rules, and principles. Parameters of space law include space exploration, liability for damage, weapons use, rescue effort ...

, declaring space the " province of all mankind", understanding spaceflight as its resource, sharing of outer space for all humanity has been criticized as still

imperialist Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power ( economic and ...

and lacking. For example arguments for space as a solution to global problems like pollution and related narratives of survival are considered imperialist by Joon Yun. Having a considerate policy towards space is seen as an imperative to allow a thoroughly sustainable human society also on Earth. Space ethics altogether has been around for decades, with contemporary representatives of the field, such as Tony Milligan, seeing an increasing need to more firmly establish it, particularly considering the urgent issue of space environmental protection.

List of organizations

Actively involved

Organizations that are directly involved in space exploration, having their own active projects.

Lobbying

Organizations that focus mainly on lobbying government agencies and businesses to step up their efforts.

Educating and publicizing

Organisations involved in educating the public, to boost their understanding and enthusiasm about space.

Theorizing

Organisations that focus on advocating theoretical work.

References

{{Politics of outer space

Advocacy Advocacy is an activity by an individual or group that aims to influence decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to influence public policy, laws and budgets by using fac ...