In this session we will consider the kinds of ethical issues that may arise in venturing to space and ask whether the ethical tools and frameworks we currently use on Earth are sufficient for tackling them, or whether new ways of conceptualizing our obligations are required. After briefly surveying moral problems associated with a variety of space activities and the types of frameworks most suitable for addressing them, we will consider the specific ethical challenges in planning for human reproduction for long-term space settlement as a demonstration of the need for principled creative thinking in this arena.

Dr Victor Cole is an Assistant Professor at the Singapore Institute of Technology where he teaches critical thinking, communication and healthcare ethics. He trained as an English teacher at Oxford University and later took a PhD in Bioethics at Monash University. He is a lifelong space enthusiast who developed the world’s first undergraduate course in space ethics at the National University of Singapore in 2013. He is currently researching the ethics of human reproduction in space in collaboration with scientists and ethicists from the same university and consulting with space industry practitioners.