NatSec EmTech

Laura K. Donohue

Where Innovation meets Intelligence. Every episode is a journey to the unseen, unimagined places, from Space race 2.0, AI dilemmas, crypto crackdowns, bioengineering breakthroughs to strange new weapons you’ve never heard of. Join me as I bring together experts, insiders, and surprising voices to help you understand the technologies shaping the world we all are about to live in. 🎧 Listen now on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 💡Want more - Join the Club @ https://nationalsecurity.law.georgetown.edu/natsec-technology/ and help shape the world!

Episodes

  1. 6 DAYS AGO

    Jurisprudence in Zero G: Space Law 101 with Col. Todd Pennington, U.S. Air Force, Ret., (former) Staff Judge Advocate USSPACECOM

    What if the future of space isn’t driven by innovation but by 60-year-old treaties, fragmented regulatory regimes, and a legal vacuum no one’s rushing to fill?   As commercial space activity accelerates and geopolitical stakes rise, the question is no longer whether space law matters but whether it’s ready for what’s coming next?  In this episode, Colonel Todd Pennington (USAF, Ret.) breaks down the foundations of space law from ownership and sovereignty to liability, regulation, and the growing role of private actors. As commercial expansion accelerates and geopolitical competition intensifies, legacy frameworks are being pushed far beyond what their drafters ever envisioned.   Here's a guided walkthrough of the episode:   [01:44] Ad Coelum and the origins:  Who really “owns” space, and how early legal thinking continue to shape today’s debates   [05:21] The Outer Space Treaty (1967): While International law guarantees freedom of exploration coupled with state responsibility, are there any hidden underlying asymmetries?    [10:33] Rescue & Return Agreement (1968): What happens when astronauts or space objects land in foreign territory? Are the rules same for other state objects too?    [12:28] Liability Convention (1972): Who pays when satellites collide or cause damage? Is this liability fault- based or absolute?  And can private companies negotiate on their own?   [16:19] Registration convention 1976: States must provide information about each space object they place in outer space, but is there real global transparency and why it matters?    [17:36] The Moon Agreement, 1984: The Moon as the “common heritage of the mankind”. But why did the Agreement fail?   [20:09] Bogota Declaration, 1976: Can Equatorial countries’ claim segments of geostationary orbit above their land?    [22:28] LEO, MEO, GEO and Beyond: How do satellite congestion and the strategic importance of Lagrange points position orbital space as the next geopolitical frontier?   And much more…   Follow us on: LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram   Join the Center for National Security Club and be part of the conversation shaping tomorrow’s national security landscape.

    32 min

  2. 16 APR

    Space, Sovereignty, and the Private Frontier: A Conversation with Tom McSorley, General Counsel, NATO DIANA | Formerly Space X

    Space is no longer the exclusive domain of the public sector. Commercial actors are driving innovation at an unprecedented pace, reshaping how space is accessed, built, and governed. As private capabilities expand, governments increasingly rely on commercial partnerships to secure the technologies and infrastructure essential to national security and strategic advantage. But what does that reliance mean? Does it make governments responsible for the actions of private actors in space? Are we regulating a rapidly evolving frontier with legacy domestic laws? Is space law merely an ancillary extension of existing authorities or does it require a fundamental rethinking? And if nations cannot align internally on regulatory frameworks, how can they coordinate effectively on the international stage? In this conversation, Tom McSorley, currently General Counsel at the NATO Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA), and formerly with SpaceX unpacks the tension between innovation and regulation, sovereignty and partnership, ambition and restraint. We examine the biggest regulatory inhibitors facing the United States, explore what the space ecosystem could look like 15 years from now, and wonder whether point-to-point travel through space across Earth’s surface is closer than we think? Disclaimer: The views expressed in this podcast are the personal views of the guest and shall in no circumstances be attributed to NATO, DIANA, or NatSec EmTech.

    42 min

  3. SEASON 1 TRAILER

    NatSec EmTech Trailer

    The future of national security is no longer on land, it’s in code, labs, and orbit. Georgetown University’s Center for National Security is proud to launch NatSec–EmTech, a  podcast hosted by Professor Laura Donohue, exploring the world of AI, VR, space, cryptocurrency, biomanipulation and more. Excited? Join us on April 16  for our debut season on Space Law because it is not science fiction, it is National security.

    2 min

Trailer

About

Where Innovation meets Intelligence. Every episode is a journey to the unseen, unimagined places, from Space race 2.0, AI dilemmas, crypto crackdowns, bioengineering breakthroughs to strange new weapons you’ve never heard of. Join me as I bring together experts, insiders, and surprising voices to help you understand the technologies shaping the world we all are about to live in. 🎧 Listen now on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 💡Want more - Join the Club @ https://nationalsecurity.law.georgetown.edu/natsec-technology/ and help shape the world!

Information

  • Creator
    Laura K. Donohue
  • Years Active
    2k
  • Episodes
    3
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Laura K. Donohue
  • Show Website
    NatSec EmTech

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