Global Governance of Low Earth Orbit Satellites

This volume brings together international experts to address the policy, legal, and technological dimensions of governing Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite broadband infrastructure. Global Governance of Low Earth Orbit Satellites is grounded in a multi-year, interdisciplinary research project generously supported by the Internet Society Foundation as part of its “Decolonizing the Internet” program. The contributions presented in this book were developed through a combination of scholarly inquiry, open-access reports, and sustained engagement at key international forums—including the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), the European Society of International Law (ESIL), ICANN, RightsCon, and IETF. Together, these chapters reflect on how multistakeholder institutions can respond to urgent global challenges related to transnational data governance, cybersecurity, digital inclusion, and infrastructural equity. The volume serves as both a scholarly compendium and a practical policy guide for advancing sustainable, inclusive, and secure governance of emerging space-based internet systems.

This document is an output from a project funded by the Internet Society Foundation. It was supported by the Internet Society Foundation project G-202307-12461 “Satellite Internet: Trust and Data Governance” and builds upon research completed under project G-202107-04813 “Decolonizing the Internet: Global Governance of LEO Satellite Broadband”.