Toward Dangerous US Unilateralism on Solar Geoengineering

Abstract

As social scientists, we are concerned about the impact of the National Academies Report on solar geoengineering. It has already set into motion a major, federally coordinated national research program in the United States to develop this dangerous technology. We emphasize that scientists and researchers are not the ones who will be making decisions on deployment, so research and development should not proceed without integrating broader international perspectives. If the US government does not pause to establish effective international governance and public participation before investing more in solar geoengineering, then the NAS report will have–regardless of the intentions of the committee–opened the door for the US to unilaterally shape and advance the global development of solar geoengineering.