diff --git a/supabase/functions/process-selective-approval/index.ts b/supabase/functions/process-selective-approval/index.ts
index c5d3997f..e0bfe17d 100644
--- a/supabase/functions/process-selective-approval/index.ts
+++ b/supabase/functions/process-selective-approval/index.ts
@@ -16,7 +16,31 @@ import {
 import { formatEdgeError, toError } from '../_shared/errorFormatter.ts';
 
 const SUPABASE_URL = Deno.env.get('SUPABASE_URL') || 'https://api.thrillwiki.com';
-const SUPABASE_ANON_KEY = Deno.env.get('SUPABASE_ANON_KEY')!;
+const SUPABASE_ANON_KEY = Deno.env.get('SUPABASE_ANON_KEY');
+
+// ============================================================================
+// CRITICAL: Validate environment variables at startup
+// ============================================================================
+if (!SUPABASE_ANON_KEY) {
+  const errorMsg = 'CRITICAL: SUPABASE_ANON_KEY environment variable is not set!';
+  console.error(errorMsg, {
+    timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+    hasUrl: !!SUPABASE_URL,
+    url: SUPABASE_URL,
+    availableEnvVars: Object.keys(Deno.env.toObject()).filter(k => 
+      k.includes('SUPABASE') || k.includes('URL')
+    )
+  });
+  throw new Error('Missing required environment variable: SUPABASE_ANON_KEY');
+}
+
+console.log('Edge function initialized successfully', {
+  timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+  function: 'process-selective-approval',
+  hasUrl: !!SUPABASE_URL,
+  hasKey: !!SUPABASE_ANON_KEY,
+  keyLength: SUPABASE_ANON_KEY.length
+});
 
 interface ApprovalRequest {
   submissionId: string;
@@ -26,6 +50,20 @@ interface ApprovalRequest {
 
 // Main handler function
 const handler = async (req: Request) => {
+  // ============================================================================
+  // Log every incoming request immediately
+  // ============================================================================
+  console.log('Request received', {
+    timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+    method: req.method,
+    url: req.url,
+    headers: {
+      authorization: req.headers.has('Authorization') ? '[PRESENT]' : '[MISSING]',
+      contentType: req.headers.get('Content-Type'),
+      traceparent: req.headers.get('traceparent') || '[NONE]'
+    }
+  });
+
   // Handle CORS preflight requests
   if (req.method === 'OPTIONS') {
     return new Response(null, { 
@@ -485,20 +523,29 @@ const handler = async (req: Request) => {
     );
 
   } catch (error) {
+    // Enhanced error logging with full details
+    const errorDetails = {
+      timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
+      requestId: rootSpan?.spanId || 'unknown',
+      duration: rootSpan?.duration || 0,
+      error: formatEdgeError(error),
+      errorType: error instanceof Error ? error.constructor.name : typeof error,
+      stack: error instanceof Error ? error.stack : undefined,
+      action: 'process_approval'
+    };
+
+    console.error('Uncaught error in handler', errorDetails);
+    
     endSpan(rootSpan, 'error', error instanceof Error ? error : toError(error));
     logSpan(rootSpan);
     
-    edgeLogger.error('Unexpected error', { 
-      requestId, 
-      duration: rootSpan.duration,
-      error: formatEdgeError(error),
-      stack: error instanceof Error ? error.stack : undefined,
-      action: 'process_approval'
-    });
+    edgeLogger.error('Unexpected error', errorDetails);
+    
     return new Response(
       JSON.stringify({
         error: 'Internal server error',
-        message: error instanceof Error ? error.message : 'Unknown error'
+        message: error instanceof Error ? error.message : 'Unknown error',
+        requestId: rootSpan?.spanId || 'unknown'
       }),
       { 
         status: 500,