What role (if any) should EA play in shaping governance norms for geoengineering? Are there strong points of leverage that could be moved now? Relatedly, should anticipatory governance for geoengineering come from existing institutions or will we need bespoke institutions with narrower mandates and deeper technocratic knowledge?
Very good questions. They go a little beyond my expertise. It’s striking that, in Britain, recent government success stories (ARIA, AISI, the vaccines taskforce) have existed outside the normal bureaucratic structures. That principle probably holds for geoengineering projects. But geoengineering projects would have the additional complexity of affecting everyone, which seems to demand accountability — though, in, practice, I’m not convinced that there’ll ever be a situation where everyone on the planet gets a vote on something like stratospheric aerosol injection. I gather the Degrees Initiative is trying to address that question of accountability. I also think that advocates for geoengineering should be wary of appearing Astroturfed.
What role (if any) should EA play in shaping governance norms for geoengineering? Are there strong points of leverage that could be moved now? Relatedly, should anticipatory governance for geoengineering come from existing institutions or will we need bespoke institutions with narrower mandates and deeper technocratic knowledge?
Very good questions. They go a little beyond my expertise. It’s striking that, in Britain, recent government success stories (ARIA, AISI, the vaccines taskforce) have existed outside the normal bureaucratic structures. That principle probably holds for geoengineering projects. But geoengineering projects would have the additional complexity of affecting everyone, which seems to demand accountability — though, in, practice, I’m not convinced that there’ll ever be a situation where everyone on the planet gets a vote on something like stratospheric aerosol injection. I gather the Degrees Initiative is trying to address that question of accountability. I also think that advocates for geoengineering should be wary of appearing Astroturfed.