Broad support for SRM research within bounds, report finds
Pictured: undergraduate students at a new course on Climate Repair and SRM at the Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge.
A public dialogue has found broad support for solar radiation modification research, as long as it is strictly governed and does not distract from cutting emissions.
Commissioned by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and Sciencewise, the dialogue brought together 52 participants from across the UK. Over 17 hours of workshops and discussion, they heard from 19 specialists spanning climate science, ethics, engineering, and governance, including some publicly against SRM research.
"I am heartened by the results published this week," said Prof Shaun Fitzgerald, Director of the Centre for Climate Repair at the University of Cambridge. "I hope this will help foster more support for research, whilst also being clear that such work must do no harm to people or the environment and should not distract society from reducing greenhouse gas emissions."
The Centre for Climate Repair leads research projects on a number of SRM approaches, including sea ice thickening, marine cloud brightening, and stratospheric aerosol injection. Academics from the Centre were consulted as part of the dialogue to provide information and answer questions.
Shaun Fitzgerald, "Specialist Presenter" to the dialogue, leads a new project investigating artificial rethickening of Arctic sea ice. Findings from 2024-25 fieldwork were also covered in the media today.
"It would be much better if we could get our act together and stop destroying the planet," said one participant. "But I’m pessimistic about that so have [SRM] in the back pocket as an emergency measure. It would only be used if there was no other way, if we just needed more time."
Through their discussions, the participants developed six core principles, which NERC have outlined as:
- do no harm to people or the environment
- do not distract from reducing greenhouse gas emissions
- global collaboration, equity and governance: research should be internationally coordinated and inclusive
- public information and engagement: ongoing dialogue with the public is essential
- prioritise the public good and future generations
- research integrity, transparency and accountability
"It's very invigorating to see that by bringing people into the room who are not scientists nor policymakers, they still ask the same questions that the scientists and policymakers ask," said Clara Botto, PhD student at the Centre for Climate Repair, in a video on the dialogue. "National policy should be informed by what the people want."
Learning from other fields
The findings from the report build on current thinking and will help guide ongoing research. Earlier this year, Fitzgerald and colleagues from the University of Cambridge released a paper calling on leaders to learn from controversial medical research, like IVF and transplant surgery, to create more open spaces for thoughtful dialogue and governance on SRM.
“Whether we like it or not, the state of the world is making discussions on SRM research increasingly urgent,” said Fitzgerald. “We have got to be able to talk about it openly and honestly if we are to determine what research is appropriate and how it can be done fairly.”
The authors suggested steps for a way forward in climate engineering discussions, including oversight mechanisms, defined boundaries, and specialised review systems. The existence of such things in the medical field, they said, suggests that “consensus on ethically challenging research is possible, if not always easy.”
Keeping the main thing, the main thing
A key message from the participants in the recent dialogue is that SRM should not become an excuse to slow down decarbonisation, which is a refrain we can't share enough.
"There is no equivocation," said Fitzgerald in an article last year: "emissions reduction is front and centre of everything that follows. Without rapid, large-scale cuts, climate repair becomes an exercise in diminishing returns... Framed properly, research into climate repair can sharpen the urgency of mitigation rather than dilute it: the message is that emissions cuts are the condition for success, not a negotiable option."
The Centre for Climate Repair welcomes input and discussion on the pressing questions of SRM and related approaches. Sign up to our mailing list to find out about upcoming public events and join conversations on our social media channels (LinkedIn, Instagram, Bluesky, and YouTube).
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