News
A selection of the latest content on the SGR site.
Resources
Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, looks at how the fossil fuel and arms industries finance professional engineering and science organisations - and the many issues this raises - in this summary of the new report, Irresponsible Science?
6 October 2019
It can seem odd that a refusal to act is a good way to motivate action, writes Andrew Simms, SGR. But striking has been a tool of change for most of recorded history and for good reasons.
17 September 2019
Barnaby Pace explores how international examples of defence diversification programmes show what success could look like in the UK – answering employment concerns and if Britain's nuclear weapons should be cancelled or curtailed.
10 September 2019
Dr Philip Webber, Scientists for Global Responsibility, considers the recent demise of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, and recalls the dangerous decade before it was originally agreed.
29 August 2019
As the world marks the 50th anniversary of the first Moon landing, Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, argues that human space-flight is highly polluting, very expensive and has contributed to international arms races.
20 July 2019
Dr Jan Maskell, SGR, examines the potential of behaviour change to help to reduce plastic waste.
2 July 2019
Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, summarises the latest data on the large but neglected carbon emissions of military activities, and argues that they need to be rapidly reduced.
29 June 2019
Dr Peter Burt of Drone Wars UK says that, in spite of contrary assurances, the UK is developing the components of autonomous weaponry.
12 June 2019
Prof John Finney argues that we must act to prevent the ‘morally repugnant’ prospect of machines with the power and discretion to take human life.
11 June 2019
Dr Philip Webber, SGR, summarises the extremely serious dangers of the continued deployment of nuclear weapons around the world, in this article first published on the Metro website.
7 June 2019
The nuclear armed nations have inadvertently created a global Doomsday machine, built with 15,000 nuclear weapons. Most (93%) have been built by Russia and in the US, 3,100 of them are ready to fire within hours.
Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2019/05/18/we-will-all-end-up-killing-each-other-an…
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MetroUK | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MetroUK/
Dr Philip Webber, SGR, argues that UK government thinking on security needs to change profoundly, and use more of a science-based approach to tackling global problems.
5 June 2019
Welcome to the new online home for Scientists for Global Responsibility, and announcing the 2019 Responsible Science conference asking: should scientists walk the talk on climate breakdown?
28 May 2019
In advance of a European Parliament vote on the new European Defence Fund - which would allow 13 billion euros to be spent on military research and technology - 1000 researchers have signed a statement opposing the fund.
17 April 2019
Just when it looked like UK coal might be phased out, a company in Cumbria is trying to give it a long-term future – undermining urgent efforts to tackle climate disruption. Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, argues for a halt to the proposed project.
17 March 2019
Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, examines how society uses and misuses science and technology - and highlights ways in which we can reshape our relationship with these powerful forces to help bring about a more secure and sustainable society.
Bristol Peace Lecture, 9 March 2019
Dr Philip Webber and Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, examine the growing financial and technical problems of renewing the UK's nuclear weapons system.
21 February 2019
Feedbacks and tipping points are being dangerously downplayed in the climate debate, argues Prof Bill McGuire, University College London. As climate protests - including the School Climate Strike - gather momentum, he argues it's time for some healthy and realistic alarmism.
14 February 2019
Fears of an artificial intelligence apocalypse make the news, but it's AI-fuelled inequality we should worry about, says Andrew Simms, SGR.
Article from New Scientist, 14 November 2018
Publications
Responsible Science is SGR's new journal in which we explore some of the biggest ethical challenges facing science and technology today.
It comes with membership of SGR and keeps you up-to-date with what we’re doing.
This report summarises a range of concerns about the rapid advances in AI and robotics - in areas such as lethal autonomous weapons, accidental nuclear war, fake news, online privacy, driverless cars and more...
2018