A childhood dream to be an astronaut helped fuel an interest in space law for Euan McFarlane, who this week graduated from Aberdeen University for the second time.
Euan, 22, added a postgraduate Masters Degree in Public International Law to his undergraduate degree which he also gained in Aberdeen.
He said: “I did my dissertation on space law which I really enjoyed. In my opinion there’s still a lot of stuff that needs to be done in that area so it would be cool to end up going into that field.
“As a kid, I always wanted to be an astronaut. So maybe in some way, that would be a way of still letting me be an astronaut!”
Originally from Glenrothes in Fife, Euan attended Bell Baxter High School in Cupar but says Aberdeen is now home, after meeting his girlfriend in the Granite City during his studies.
“My life is up here now. I fell in love with the city and my friends and girlfriend are up here. I met her at the St Machar Bar where we both worked.”
“My dad studied at RGU in the 1980s so I guess that was the first link to Aberdeen,” said Euan.
How was graduation day?
“It was fantastic, really good,” said Euan. “My parents came up on Sunday night so we went out for dinner.
“Then on Monday my flatmate was also graduating so we opened a bottle of champagne and had a couple of glasses of that.
“Then we walked in, took pictures, then me and my girlfriend and my parents went out for lunch.”
What exactly is space law?
“It’s not that detailed, which is part of the problem,” said Euan.
“It’s a collection of four or five different treaties which are meant to regulate the way things work in space and the future of space.
“And it’s not really working. They are a little bit outdated and different countries are beginning to try to do their own things.
“There are five main treaties, some are more well-rounded or more subscribed to by countries than others.
“The treaties are between countries. They were made by the UN and then different countries signed up to them with varying levels of subscription for the various treaties.”
What was the dissertation about?
“It focused on the rise of private actors in the space sector and how that interacted with the law and whether they were becoming the main drivers in the sector over states themselves and countries.”
Meaning Elon Musk?
“Not specifically, SpaceX and so on are some of the companies. A lot of it was about how some countries are starting to make their legislation more friendly to having corporate space travel as an idea to focus on.
“Rather than in the past where it was all space companies like NASA and so on, that led the first drive.
“That lasted 40 or 50 years and that’s starting to change a little bit. It’s not quite there yet but there’s quite a lot going on.
“Part of it is who is allowed to own resources and so on and the general idea is countries on their own aren’t allowed to own resources.
“It’s meant to be collectively for all of humanity, that’s what the treaties generally say.
Buying and selling plots on Mars
“But we are beginning to move towards some companies trying to say they can sell plots on the moon or plots on Mars, which goes against that and so there is a disconnect.”
What does Euan think about private companies saying they can own a plot on Mars?
“I’m not the biggest fan of it,” he said. “It’s one of these weird ones because we are not there yet, not on Mars, not on the moon all the time.
“It’s an abstract thing but it doesn’t really go in line with the way the space treaties are written, the way it was thought space exploration was going to go 40 or 50 years ago.
“Then, countries were at the forefront whereas now it’s a bit more individual.”
What would Euan hope to achieve in his career if he had the chance to pursue his interest in space law?
“I would like to have the ability to either make newer treaties because the treaties we have are a bit outdated.
“Newer treaties that have a lot of subscription from the key actors. It would be the US, UK, Russia, China, the ones with the big space programmes. India as well.
“More treaties that would have more of a single system that all of the countries are pulling towards.
“At the moment more countries are making their own domestic legislation and it’s like everyone pulling individually for their own benefit rather than for the benefit of everyone.”
Where could you pursue a career in space law?
“Most likely it would be the UN’s Office for Outer Space Affairs,” said Euan.
“Somewhere in there, potentially trying to liaise and be involved with the different groups to try to build up treaties and try to build consensus between states and countries.
“Saying it sounds easy, but I mean that’s a ridiculous amount of work and very difficult. People have been trying to do it for 50 years.
“To imagine that I’m going to be able to just walk in and do it would be incredibly arrogant but you’ve got to have some hope.
First plan – to take a break
“I’m not looking to become a domestic solicitor or advocate. My plan is to hopefully, in time, be in research roles.
“Somewhere like the UN or other NGOs. Researching as part of a team, helping to form things and changing policy and so on.”
Euan currently works at Sugar Bird Wines in the city as he plans his next steps.
“I’m happy working and staying in Aberdeen at the moment, just to have a bit of time to work things out.”
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