Curriculum Vitae and Bio

BIO

Dr. Edythe E. Weeks, Esq is a Fulbright Specialist Program alumnus, after being awarded grants for the successful completion of teaching appointments at Омский государственный университет им. Ф.М. Достоевского (Omsk F.M. Dostoevsky State University), in Siberia (2015) and Universidad Veracruzana, North American Studies Program, Escuela para Estudiantes Extranjeros in Xalapa, Mexico and Universidad de Guadalajara Pacific Studies Department, Social Sciences and Humanities Campus, Jalisco Guadalajara, México (2016). Weeks earned her PhD in political science from Northern Arizona University’s Department of Politics & International Affairs in 2006, and a Juris Doctors degree from the University of Missouri - Columbia, School of Law in 1987.  Although Weeks tends to aim her focus on remote regions, her methodology allows participants to generate innovative and creative insights, which can be extended and applied to a wide variety of international topics.   Weeks’ outer space research is proving useful for the rapidly melting Arctic and Antarctica paradigms. For example, the Outer Space Treaty of 1967 proclaims outer space as res communis territory. New and old key actors have already placed trigger events on the agenda such as developing new types of spaceships, plans for colonizing Mars, the Moon and other outer space locations. Gold, iridium, osmium and other platinum group metals have been located on Near Earth asteroids and asteroid mining is an emergent industry. Recent news reports have indicated that asteroid mining projects could be worth several quadrillion dollars. In addition, the icy regions of the Arctic and Antarctica are melting faster than scientists had predicated. In the Arctic, the melting ice means that natural resources such as nickel, copper, coal, gold, uranium, tungsten, diamonds, natural gas, and oil are becoming more accessible. Similarly, Antarctica is also melting and releasing a variety of natural resources. Examples may include silver, copper, gold, nickel, platinum, iron ore, chromium, cobalt, molybdenum, zinc, manganese lead, titanium, nickel, and uranium.

Her work has garnered the attention of international policy makers within the international space law community. Recent examples include being named as a space law subject matter expert in a 2018 Washington, D.C. joint project with Air Force Space Command, Department of the Air Force, and Pentagon-Joint Chiefs of Staff and resulting white paper entitled, Strategic Multilayer Assessment on Contested Space Operations. In addition, Weeks also co-authored the ground breaking International Study on Global Space Governance, organized by the Institute Air & Space Law, Faculty of Law, McGill University in Montreal. Weeks served as co-chair/author on Chapter 15 “Mining and Utilization of Space Natural Resources” and co-author Chapter 21 “Extending the Benefits and Uses of Space to All Humankind” (Springer Press, 2017). Pursuant to the Montreal Declaration, this international study brings together knowledge, suggestions and recommendations from approximately 70 space law experts aimed at establishing an effective global governance regime for peaceful and sustainable exploration, use and exploitation of outer space for the benefit of all humankind. Weeks is the author of Outer Space Development, International Relations and Space Law: A Method for Elucidating Seeds (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2012). She is working on updating this book to include polar law and politics. This book was featured on the Hague’s Peace Palace Librarian’s Choice website from 2012-2014. So far, Worldcat lists the book’s global reach as having been acquired by libraries in approximately 64 countries: Afghanistan, Armenia, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Columbia, Curaçao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Finland, Germany, Guatemala, Greece, Guyana, Hong Kong, India, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Korea, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, Namibia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, the United States and the Virgin Islands.  https://www.worldcat.org/title/outer-space-development-international-relations-and-space-law-a-method-for-elucidating-seeds/oclc/812198276&referer=brief_results

Weeks’ scholarship and IAC participation has been aimed at promoting the increased participation of a wider range of people and nations throughout the world. For example, she recently participated in the IAC2016 as the Fulbright Specialist to Mexico, serving to heighten the level of awareness, engagement and knowledge regarding space law, policy and the presence of this globally significant event. Weeks maintains a close working relationship with Institute of International Education’s Council for International Exchange of Scholars, specializing in strategies for institutional linkages to expand global reach.

She was elected into the International Institute of Space Law in 2004 and has been published in a wide variety of international scholarly journals including Acta Astronautica, Revue de Droit International de Sciences Diplomatiques et Politiques, and the Colloquium Proceedings of the International Institute of Space Law and the International Astronautical Federation. She also has presented a wide variety of papers before the International Astronautical Federation Congresses (2002-2014), serving as a delegate in Houston, Texas (2002); Bremen Germany (2003); Valencia Spain (2006); Hyderabad India (2007); Prague Czech Republic (2010); Cape Town South Africa (2011), Naples Italy (2012); Beijing China (2013); Toronto Canada (2014); Guadalajara Mexico (2016); and Washington, D.C. in 2019. Papers presented on her behalf during the congresses in Vancouver, Canada (2004) and Glasgow Scotland (2008). She has performed public speeches at the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences, Department of Space Studies at the University of North Dakota and at Washington University’s McDonnell Center for Space Studies: and Universidad Veracruzana’s North American Studies Program; Centro de Ciencias de la Tierra, and the Instituto de Ecología of Xalapa.

Seeking to replicate her research methodology, she has been applying critical insights to the polar regions. Recently Weeks returned from participating in the Antarctic Connections at the End of the World: Understanding the Past and Shaping the Future, Biennial Conference of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research’s (SCAR) Standing Committee on Antarctic Humanities and Social Sciences (SC-HASS), to be held 3-5 April 2019 in Ushuaia, Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Since 2016 she has been researching existing partnerships among multiple organizations or networks of organizations and funding sources which make up the polar epistemic communities. Hence, she has recently become a member and Affiliate Researcher of SCAR and a member of the SCAR's Humanities and Social Sciences group as well as the Arctic Research Consortium of the United States (ARCUS), the Association of Polar Early Career Researchers (APECS), and the AG-POL SciNex in Antarctic working group. Weeks’ presentation at the above-referenced SC-HASS April 2019 conference, entitled “Enabling the Global Community to Find their Purpose: 21st Century Methodological Approach for Antarctica Engagement Visions”, accomplished goals similar to those being proposed herein. During the Conference Weeks was able to form viable links with key individuals of Antarctica related institutions. Weeks has also been invited to present at the 12th Polar Law Symposium: The Fundamental Principles of Polar Law, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia December 1-4, 2019 at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, Hobart, Tasmania. Her paper is entitled “Peopling the Future: Applying an Interpretive Methodology to Highlight Solutions for Global Inequality, or Conflict in the Pre-Colonization Stage of Polar Regions Development and Outer Space Development”.

While a PhD candidate, Weeks began creating curriculum and delivering instruction at Northern Arizona University Courses taught from 2002-2019 including, for example: Black Cinema; Introduction to Ethnic Studies; Chican@s/Latin@ Cinema; Race, Identity and Film; Introduction to African American Studies; African Americans and the Law; Race, Power and Politics; and Diversity, Politics and Law. Weeks has been on the faculty at Webster University Worldwide since 2008 and currently serves as Adjunct Full Professor, periodically teaching and creating international relations themed courses for the Department of History, Politics and International Relations’, for both the undergraduate and Masters in International Relations program. Courses include International Law and Politics of Outer Space and Introduction to International Relations. Since 2009, Weeks has also been serving as adjunct faculty at Washington University teaching courses including Introduction to International Politics; International Politics; The New Space Rush; and Race and Ethnicity in American Politics. Her blended talents include extensive university teaching simultaneously at three US universities (2009-2016). While a PhD candidate, Dr. Weeks began creating curriculum and delivering instructions for the Department of Politics and International Affairs, Honors Program and the fledgling Ethnic Studies Program and served as Visiting Professor, and adjunct faculty there at Northern Arizona University (2002-2016). Professor Weeks was selected as a showcased instructor for the March 2017 Blackboard Collaborate Online Learning Showcase, sponsored by University College at Washington University. Her online Race and Ethnicity in American Politics BbLearn classroom has been selected as providing a great example of “what online learning could and should be”, for incorporating new interactive web conferencing tool online technologies to collaborate. Teaching experiences include various projects teaching children Space Law. She is committed to assisting people to reach their full potential as scholars and academics.

https://news.nau.edu/edythe-weeks-space-law/#.XN

http://antarctica-hasseg.com/2019/03/weeks-edythe/

http://www.iafastro.org/

http://www.iafastro.org/events/iac/past-iacs/

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