Dr. Sagnika Chanda, Dr. Zita Hüsing, and Dr. Lainie Pomerleau present “The Challenges and Ethics of Space Exploration,” a one-day symposium for undergraduate students, faculty, and staff. The symposium focuses on Science Fiction’s ability to help people critically engage with contemporary issues of space exploration and astrobiology. This event investigates how space exploration can be conducted in an ethical and sustainable manner, drawing from genres like Science Fiction as a source of innovation and inspiration. 

The symposium will feature a panel hosted by Glenn Lgihtsey and Georgia Teach’s newly established Space Research Initiative and a keynote address from writer and curator Xenia Benivolski, whose current work examines Amazon’s involvement in space travel and that involvement’s corresponding labor issues. The symposium will also include an undergraduate student showcase featuring work from ENGL 1101/ and 1102 that engages science and speculative fiction to examine the ethics of astrobiology.