Authored four research papers examining how legal institutions allocate authority and responsibility under technological and environmental uncertainty. Combined treaty and statutory analysis, structured case comparison, and risk-risk analysis to develop proposals for authorization, oversight, and continuing responsibility.
Selected Research Papers
Project 1: Autonomous Authority in Space: Risk Tradeoffs and the Law of Delegation
Examined when autonomous action can be authorized in advance and when changing conditions or third-party interests require renewed review.
- Distinguished legal authority to undertake an activity from evidence supporting autonomous execution. Analyzed autonomous spacecraft operations, orbital collision avoidance, debris capture, and SETI.
- Proposed a task-specific authorization framework. Defined permitted actions, operating conditions, reassessment triggers, independent scrutiny, and records enabling reconstruction of consequential decisions.
Project 2: Small States and the Governance of Strategic Space Dependence
Examined how international cooperation and domestic institutions affect a small state's ability to exercise meaningful control over critical space infrastructure.
- Distinguished formal authority and asset ownership from operational control and supervisory capacity. Conducted a structured comparison of New Zealand's launch regulation, Norway's Arctic satellite partnership, and Luxembourg's LUXEOSys procurement.
- Proposed an accountable-acceptance standard for strategic dependencies. The proposed standard would require authorities to identify interruption powers, usable response rights, and funded implementation capacity before commitment.
Project 3: Who May Choose the Lesser Risk: Solar Geoengineering and the Legal Duties of Comparison and Continuity
Examined who may authorize climate interventions and how responsibility for continued operation and withdrawal should be allocated.
- Distinguished projected climate benefits from legitimate authority to deploy. Examined solar geoengineering through international environmental law and risk-risk analysis.
- Proposed comparative justification and continuity duties. Addressed policy alternatives, affected communities, transition financing, and withdrawal; separated changes in political control from abrupt physical termination.
Project 4: Mangrove Restoration and the Limits of Compensatory Mitigation: Lessons from Florida for the Greater Bay Area
Examined when ecological restoration evidence can support project approval, acceptance, and compensation for newly authorized habitat loss.
- Compared mangrove protection and compensatory mitigation across Florida and the Greater Bay Area. Examined legal obligations, approval conditions, and evidence of ecological recovery.
- Proposed staged authorization and acceptance conditions separating construction completion from ecological performance. Specified site-specific baselines, funded correction, and continuing responsibility for delayed or failed restoration.