Vienna, Austria – (October 21, 2020) –
On the 5th of March 2020, the Moon Village Association (MVA) published its draft Best Practices for Sustainable Lunar Activities, with the goal of encouraging all stakeholders interested in lunar activities to develop, and operate within, common standards of sustainable behaviour. Several countries plan to launch spacecraft to the Moon in the near future in order to conduct robotic (as well as manned) missions, some of which will take place in close proximity to one another. The adoption of the Best Practices, by as many stakeholders as possible, will reduce the risk of involuntary accidents and harmful interference, increase confidence building, promote peaceful cooperation, and ensure that lunar activities are conducted in a sustainable manner.
Following a public consultation period of 6 months and several webinars and outreach events, MVA has published the Issue 1 of the Best Practices for Sustainable lunar activities which you
can read here:
In view of the urgency of the matter, MVA envisages a two-step process for the implementation of the Best Practices:
- Step 1: Ensure that the Best Practices have the support of major stakeholders so as to de-risk, as soon as possible, all future lunar missions.
- Step 2: Incorporate the Best Practices initiative into relevant UN COPUOS multilateral discussions, including as an input to the Committee’s work on the exploration, exploitation and utilization of natural resources on celestial bodies.
MVA would like to formally recognise those stakeholders supporting this initiative at the opening of the 1st Online Global Moon Village Workshop and Symposium planned for 9-10 of November 2020.
Giuseppe Reibaldi, President of the Moon Village Association stated: ”By publishing the Best Practices for Sustainable Lunar Activities, as well the strategy for implementing them, the Moon Village Association is making an important contribution to define a common level playing field for future lunar missions. The goal is to reduce risk of involuntary accidents, foster peaceful cooperation, including developing countries, and start sustainable lunar exploration and utilization”.
Glafki Antoniou
Management Support and Public Relations
Email: yc.gr1713506208o.oes1713506208c@osa1713506208-avm1713506208
About the Moon Village Association
The Moon Village Association (MVA) is an international non-governmental organization (NGO) based in Vienna, founded in 2017.Its goal is the creation of a permanent global informal forum for stakeholders like governments, industry, academia and the general public interested in the development of the Moon Village. The MVA is the assembling of all efforts from private industry, governments and others aimed to explore and use the Moon in a sustainable manner. Therefore, it is not a literal village on the Moon, it is not an ‘International Space Station on the Moon’, and it is not a single science facility. The MVA fosters cooperation for existing or planned Moon exploration programs, be they public or private initiatives. It comprises approximately 220 individual and 22 institutional members from more than 46 countries, representing a diverse array of technical, scientific, cultural and interdisciplinary fields. The MVA partners with non-space organizations to promote international discussions and formulation of plans to foster the development of the Moon Village, and is creating international, national and regional networks to engage civil society around the world. The Moon Village Association’s mission is unique, bridging together both spacefaring and non-spacefaring nations offering them the opportunity to play a role in its realization. There is no other organization on the international scene having such a mission. MVA video 2020 is available: https://youtu.be/6o-EJ7rTTSc
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