Publications

INSIGHT REPORT

Pioneering the Future: Space

Technologies Poised to Revolutionize

Exploration and Economy by 2035

September 2026

FACTSHEETS

Pioneering the Future: Space

Technologies Poised to Revolutionize Exploration and Economy by 2035

June 2026

WHITE PAPER

Future of Space Law:

Operationalizing Space Governance

March 2026

REPORT

Clear Orbit, Secure Future:

 A Call to Action on Space Debris

Jan 2026

WHITE PAPER

The Future of Space Law

Insights from the ATS, UNCLOS, and ITU Frameworks

December 2025

WHITE PAPER

The Future of Space Law: 

The Evolving Dynamics of Air and Space Regulation

 September  2025

The Future Of Space Law

News

Centre for Space Futures, Novaspace and SpaceTech Gulf  Sign Agreement to Develop Global Space Capability Mapping Dashboard

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia , 23 Jun 2026|  Press Release

Clear Orbit, Secure Future: A Call to Action on Space Debris

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 26 Jan 2026 | Press Release

Centre for Space Futures Holds Workshop with Participation of 40 Global Experts

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 05 Dec 2025 | Press Release

Centre for Space Futures Releases White Paper on 'The Future of Space Law'

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 12 Sep 2025 | Press Release

The Board of Directors of the Centre for Space Futures Endorses Its Strategic Direction

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 26 May 2025 | Press Release

Saudi Space Agency to Launch the Centre for Space Futures with the World Economic Forum

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 29 April | Press Release

5 ways we can tackle growing risks from rocket bodies in orbit

Dec 09, 2025 | Economic Growth, Stories

Read More

Forum Agenda

Forum Videos

VIDEO

Press Conference: Centre for Space Futures in Riyadh

The World Economic Forum's Special Meeting, April 29, 2024

VIDEO

The Purpose of Astronauts at Davos 2024

World Economic Forum , March 9, 2024

VIDEO

PortWatch: Monitoring Trade Disruptions from Space

World Economic Forum , Dec 18, 2023

VIDEO

India's Moon Mission Triumph: Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj's Insights

World Economic Forum , Aug 23, 2023

VIDEO

Space Exploration is Back at Davos 2023

World Economic Forum , Feb 16, 2023

Forum Publications

REPORT

Space: The $1.8 Trillion Opportunity for Global Economic Growth

World Economic Forum , April 8, 2024

REPORT

Navigating the Industrial Metaverse: A Blueprint for Future Innovations

World Economic Forum , March 12, 2024

REPORT

Digital Trust: Supporting Individual Agency

World Economic Forum , Jan 18, 2024

REPORT

The Future of Global Fintech: Towards Resilient and Inclusive Growth

World Economic Forum , Jan 18, 2024

Strategic Intelligence Insights

US defense policy under the Trump administration reveals deep contradictions rooted in how the United States addresses its declining global dominance. Three competing approaches define this struggle: opportunistic military use focused on short-term goals and minimal entanglements; isolationism advocating retreat from international alliances; and selective hegemony aiming to maintain American power through focused military investment in key regions. Recent strategy documents emphasize regaining dominance in the Western Hemisphere but lack clarity on broader alliance commitments, particularly toward Europe. These contradictions pose challenges and opportunities for Europe, which should not assume NATO will remain intact under continued US unpredictability.
Latin America
US Defence Policy: Between Isolationism and the Pursuit of Dominance
Russia has been intercepting communications from European satellites using two secretive "inspector" satellites, Luch/Olymp 1 and 2, launched in 2014 and 2023. These satellites conduct prolonged proximity and rendezvous operations in geostationary orbit, shadowing European military and commercial satellites to gather signals intelligence (Sigint). By positioning themselves between target satellites and their ground stations, they can intercept both communication signals and operational command links, potentially enabling future disruption or control over European spacecraft. While not directly causing harm now, these actions form part of a broader Russian strategy to gain military advantages and intimidate European support for Ukraine. Increased transparency about these activities is a key step for Europe to counter such space-based threats.
How Russia is intercepting communications from European satellites
South Korea's ESG finance market surpassed KRW2,000 trillion (US$1.5 trillion) by the end of 2024, more than doubling since 2019, but growth slowed sharply to 8.9% from previous 20-30% rates. Private-sector ESG finance declined due to high borrowing costs and weak profitability. Social finance dominates (72.3%) due to policy-driven, low-risk lending like housing loans, while environmental finance accounts for 17.1%, with stagnation linked to regulatory uncertainty and limited renewable-energy products. Sustainability-linked loans fell 20.6%, and LNG financing classified as ESG raises greenwashing concerns. The report calls for clear ESG disclosures and expanded transition finance for carbon-intensive industries.
Republic of Korea | Financial services
South Korea’s ESG finance hits record $1.5 trillion but momentum fades
Geospatial AI (GeoAI) holds significant promise for humanitarian efforts by enabling rapid disaster assessment, early warning predictive modeling, population mapping in data-poor areas, and real-time monitoring of displacement and infrastructure damage. These tools can enhance decision-making speed, scale, and accuracy amid increasing time and resource pressures. However, despite technological advances, GeoAI adoption in humanitarian contexts remains limited due to non-technical challenges. A key gap exists between scientific capabilities and operational usability, with humanitarian users needing offline functionality, clear uncertainty communication, workflow integration, and transparency validated in the field.
The GeoAI for Humanitarian
Carbon-based molecules found in a sedimentary Martian rock named Cumberland suggest the possibility of ancient life on Mars. Curiosity rover's analysis revealed long-chain alkanes and fatty acid derivatives, organic compounds more complex than previously detected on Mars. The study argues that these organics' high concentrations cannot be fully explained by non-biological processes such as meteorite delivery, atmospheric reactions, or geological serpentinisation. Ionizing radiation would have degraded these molecules over time, implying past abundances were much higher. While acknowledging the need for extraordinary evidence, researchers highlight the plausibility of a biological origin, pointing to remnants of an ancient Martian biosphere. Definitive conclusions await lab analyses of returned Martian samples.
Molecules found in Martian rock hint at ancient life – new study
Alon Stopel, Chairman of the Israel Innovation Authority and Chief Scientist at the Ministry of Innovation, highlights Israel's resilience and leadership in deep tech and life sciences, despite global economic slowdowns and geopolitical tensions. Israel ranks fifth globally in VC investments for these sectors, with significant advancements in AI, medical devices, biotech, and cybersecurity—where it holds over 20% of global funding. Quantum computing is emerging as the next major focus, supported by innovative startups and the Israeli Quantum Computing Center, aiming to solve technical challenges and revolutionize drug discovery and material development. Combining quantum technology with AI promises transformative impacts, akin to the early internet era.
Israel | ICT
Interview Of The Week: Alon Stopel, Israel Innovation Authority
Weather disruptions at the Winter Olympics demonstrate how climate volatility threatens global supply chains, particularly in Asia Pacific, a key manufacturing hub vulnerable to extreme weather. Climate change-induced events like flooding and storms jeopardize infrastructure and suppliers, with Scope 3 emissions—those from supply chains—exceeding direct emissions by over 20 times. Despite these risks, many companies lack visibility or reduction targets for supply chain emissions, exposing them to significant financial liabilities. However, Asia Pacific firms are increasingly addressing environmental impacts, showing improved sustainability performance, though challenges in accurate carbon data persist amid complex supplier networks.
Financial services, Health
Climate volatility at Winter Olympics highlights risks to Asia supply chains
South Korea's climate change response sector is projected to become a major job creator, with the workforce growing by 41.6% from 284,000 in 2022 to 402,000 by 2032. This growth, averaging 3.6% annually, contrasts with a decline in manufacturing jobs, expected to shrink by 0.3% yearly. Jobs in mitigation technologies—especially power-generation efficiency and solar/thermal energy—are expanding rapidly, while adaptation technology employment grows modestly, mainly in water management and agriculture. The study emphasizes the importance of investment in training and reskilling to support this transition, noting that employment closely follows revenue growth and depends on government policies and funding.
Education
Climate response sector could become South Korea’s next major job engine, says study
Investing in early warning systems (EWS) in Asia and the Pacific as long-term strategic infrastructure rather than one-off projects can significantly reduce disaster-related economic losses and protect livelihoods. Current EWS are often generic, underfunded, and poorly integrated into critical sectors like agriculture and urban development, limiting their effectiveness. Key improvements include tailoring warnings to sector-specific needs, ensuring sustained financing, enhancing innovation and private sector involvement, and making alerts impact-based, localized, and accessible to vulnerable populations. Embedding EWS in national budgets and development plans, alongside data sharing and community engagement, will improve resilience, economic gains, and save lives amid increasing disaster risks.
Financial services, Health
Investing in Early Warning Systems Can Cut Disaster Losses
Rail travel in Europe, once a symbol of progress and modernity, now primarily represents social equity and accessible transport. Despite slower and less convenient journeys compared to air and road travel, trains offer advantages such as comfort, central city access, and minimal check-in times. Europe's fragmented rail systems hinder interoperability, limiting rail’s dominance. However, rail remains the most sustainable transport mode, producing significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions than road and air travel. With transport responsible for a quarter of EU emissions, prioritizing rail—especially electrified services—could be crucial for reducing carbon footprints in the future.
Rails Across Europe
Uncovering unethical practices like forced labor and environmental harm in supply chains often leads consumers to feel guilt, prompting them to change purchasing behavior. This private guilt becomes public pressure when consumers expose these issues via social media, petitions, and boycotts, generating corporate shame. Since brands rely on trust and reputation, public scrutiny threatens their legitimacy, driving them to reform supply chains. Transparency through technology, such as QR codes and digital tagging, can personalize environmental impacts, making sustainability more tangible. Collective consumer voices demanding honesty create pressure for companies to improve, making shame a powerful tool for promoting corporate accountability and sustainable practices beyond slow regulation or superficial marketing.
How shaming unethical brands makes companies improve their behaviour
Australia faces a growing solar panel waste problem as many households replace still-functional panels with newer models, leading to significant waste sent to landfills. By 2025, Australia is expected to generate about 280,000 tonnes of solar waste, rising to 685,000 tonnes by 2030. Most discarded panels are partially recycled, recovering materials like glass and aluminum, while valuable components and toxic metals often end up in landfill. Extending panel life through reuse could reduce waste, lower environmental impacts, and increase accessibility to solar power, especially for cost-sensitive users. However, economic factors, lack of certification, and safety concerns hinder reuse adoption. Establishing national standards, certification systems, and supportive government policies are key to enabling reuse alongside recycling, boosting sustainability and affordability in Australia’s solar energy sector.
Australia’s solar waste is piling up – reusing panels could be the key to fixing it
Economists and environmental scientists perceive environmental issues differently, influencing their preferred solutions. Climate change is the most commonly identified problem by both groups, but environmental scientists also emphasize broader issues like biodiversity loss and pollution, which economists tend to overlook. This divergence leads economists to favor market-based and technological solutions, while environmental scientists support more systemic approaches such as environmental regulation, degrowth, and civil disobedience. These differing perspectives contribute to debates about addressing environmental crises and the feasibility of green growth, highlighting the need for a broader shared understanding beyond carbon-centric views to foster more comprehensive solutions.
Financial services, Health
Economists and environmental scientists see the world differently – here’s why that matters
The world’s ocean crises—such as overfishing and ecosystem collapse—are deeply rooted in historical ideas and practices that shaped how societies used and valued marine resources. These challenges are not purely scientific or technical but are connected to cultural, political, and economic values developed over centuries, often under imperial and market influences. Historical analysis reveals why harmful behaviors were normalized and why past conservation efforts failed to address underlying social factors. Sustainability should be understood as an evolving cultural relationship with the sea, shaped by access, values, and responsibility across societies and time. The Blue Sustainability and Society Initiative explores this history to inform more effective and culturally aware ocean stewardship today.
Health
History holds the key to understanding the crises facing our oceans
Retrofitting and reusing existing buildings in Singapore can reduce embodied carbon emissions by nearly 70%, significantly lowering the construction sector's climate impact. A study by the Singapore University of Technology and Design found that retaining structural elements cut emissions from concrete by 91.8% and metals by 63.9%. Despite these benefits, demolition and rebuild remain the norm, driven by under-regulation and underestimation of embodied carbon in carbon accounting tools. The study recommends setting embodied carbon thresholds, updating Green Mark certification to reward reuse, and creating green financing incentives. These changes could help Singapore meet its goal to green 80% of buildings by 2030 while reducing material waste and emissions.
Singapore can sharply cut construction emissions by reusing existing buildings, study finds
The global sports economy generates approximately $2.3 trillion annually, projected to grow to $3.7 trillion by 2030, driven by sports tourism, investment opportunities, women’s sports, and emerging markets. However, rising inactivity, climate change, and environmental degradation pose risks to this growth. Sustainable development can be achieved through resource stewardship, integrating sports into urban planning, and fostering purpose-driven investments that align with climate and social goals. Leveraging sports’ cultural influence can promote healthy lifestyles, environmental responsibility, and inclusive communities, creating resilient revenue streams while supporting planetary health and social impact.
Health
Unlocking The Trillion-Dollar Potential In Sports Economy
Taiwan is advancing its circular economy through new laws, green funding, and AI-driven industrial upgrades, aiming to become a regional hub for resource-efficient industry. The circular economy sector in Taiwan grows about 9% annually, contributing significantly to its green tech industry, valued at US$16.3 billion. Key initiatives include amending waste management laws, deploying AI for recycling, and enhancing industry-academia collaboration on resource recycling technologies. Taiwan targets doubling resource productivity, cutting material use by 30%, and boosting circularity by 2.5 times by 2050. The government also plans an advisory council, green growth fund, and studies EU governance models to strengthen circular economy standards and global competitiveness.
Taiwan, China
Taiwan ramps up circular economy push with new laws, AI and green funding
The principle of “due regard” established in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty has been a binding norm of international law for nearly 60 years but remains largely uninvoked amid rising geopolitical tensions in space. Increasing militarization, harmful interference with space technologies, and growing orbital congestion threaten global security and civilian reliance on space-based services. Despite its potential to mediate disputes and promote cooperation, no state has formally invoked the “due regard” provision or utilized its consultation mechanism. Reviving this legal principle, potentially through an International Court of Justice advisory opinion, could strengthen the rule of law in outer space and help address conflicts in this increasingly contested domain.
“Due Regard” in Outer Space – a Lost Cause?
Efforts to establish a legally binding global treaty on sustainability and traceability of critical minerals at the UN Environment Assembly stalled due to political complexities and resistance from member states, particularly those with resource-rich economies. Colombia and Oman proposed the treaty to ensure traceability of minerals like copper, nickel, cobalt, and rare earth elements, vital for renewable energy and military industries. Traceability aims to prevent socio-environmental damage and illegal practices but faces challenges from complex supply chains and governance issues. The final resolution was nonbinding, focusing on dialogue and cooperation, with hopes of revisiting the treaty in 2027.
Oman
Global treaty to trace critical minerals stalls amid uncertainty
In 2025, cyber incidents targeting the EU showed a decline in unique operations but an increase in affected targets, reflecting growing cumulative and transnational impacts, especially through supply chains and interconnected sectors. The EU's new cybersecurity package, including revisions to the Cybersecurity Act and NIS 2 Directive, aims to enhance member state cooperation by strengthening ENISA’s role in shared situational awareness. However, findings from the European Repository of Cyber Incidents (EuRepoC) suggest that despite regulatory efforts, challenges remain in addressing the cumulative, sub-threshold, and strategically distributed nature of cyber threats. This raises concerns that current approaches may not fully mitigate fragmentation or reinforce European solidarity in cybersecurity responses.
Africa | ICT, Financial services, Health
Cyber Activity Balance 2025: The EU in Focus

Centre For Space Futures

© 2026 All rights reserved
Privacy Policy & Terms of Service