We are proud to announce that Professor Steve Gardiner and Research Associate Augustin Fragniere have been awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation to further their work on Geoengineering, Political Legitimacy and Justice. This two year grant will enable Steve and Augustin to develop an international research community that focuses on the ethical and political issues concerning geo-engineering.
Geoengineering, commonly defined as “the deliberate large-scale manipulation of the planetary environment to counteract anthropogenic climate change”, is emerging as a new hot topic in climate policy. Yet serious concerns have been raised about the technical feasibility, political viability and ethical desirability of key geoengineering techniques. Their project focuses on normative issues of procedural justice, distributive justice, and political legitimacy, especially as they apply to the potential governance of geoengineering. One central question is whether consideration of these issues provides reasons to favor some forms of geoengineering over others, or to resist some more vigorously than others. Another is how to incorporate normative considerations into a value-sensitive governance system. The project will involve conferences at the University of Washington and the University of Lausanne, an advance interdisciplinary seminar at the University of Washington, and the production of an edited volume.
Congratulations to Steve and Augustin!