Responsible Science

SGR Newsletters are published roughly twice a year. The main articles are listed below. For details of the current issue and back issues, See our Newsletter page

Hidden military implications of ‘building back’ with new nuclear in the UK

Dr Phil Johnstone and Prof Andy Stirling, University of Sussex, examine the entanglements between Britain's civilian and military nuclear programmes and ask, would the UK be building new nuclear power stations if it weren't for pressure from the military lobby?

20 September 2021

The potential for rapid transition of the aviation industry after COVID-19

As the world recovers from the pandemic, Dr Lucy Gilliam, Transport and Environment, looks at the steps that need to be taken to prevent the aviation sector returning to pre-COVID pollution levels.

6 September 2021

How a just transition can speed up the race to net-zero

Prof Nick Robins, London School of Economics, looks at the dynamics of a just transition away from fossil fuels.

31 August 2021

UK space ports: supporting the further militarisation of space

Prof David Webb, Leeds Beckett University, examines the links between the UK’s military and civilian space sectors.

20 August 2021

Overconsumption, the climate emergency and the scientific community

As the stark findings of the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change make global headlines, Prof Julia Steinberger, University of Lausanne, explores how to live well within environmental limits, and asks why questioning overconsumption is so problematic.

11 August 2021

Nuclear weapons are now illegal

On 22nd January 2021, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) became part of international law. As the world marks the anniversary of the dropping of the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Dr Philip Webber, SGR, examines the implications of this new UN treaty.

6 August 2021

Lessons from the campaign to end big oil sponsorship of culture

Jess Worth, Culture Unstained, reflects on the successes of, and obstacles to, the campaign to end fossil fuel sponsorship of art organisations and museums.

30 July 2021

What if we treated the climate emergency as seriously as we treated COVID–19?

Prof Alice Larkin, University of Manchester, argues that, if our society were really serious about tackling climate change, we would put much greater priority on social and economic change - as shown by the emergency response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

29 June 2021

Brexit Britain’s security policy: cutting aid to spend on weapons

Britain’s security and defence priorities in the wake of Brexit emphasise high tech military equipment such as robotic and nuclear weapons, while overseas aid is slashed and action on climate change remains inadequate. Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, assesses the situation.

11 May 2021

Aid betrayal & “catastrophic moral failure” of poorest missing vaccines

Andrew Simms, SGR, describes the UK's great aid betrayal, and the moral failure of pandemic vaccines not reaching the world's poorest.

8 March 2021

Newsletter articles