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  • HMS Vanguard at Faslane naval base

    British Pugwash

    We use the best scientific expertise, including from Pugwash’s international network, to inform the government and the public about issues relating to weapons of mass destruction – especially nuclear weapons and nuclear power – issues of war and peace, the environment and the social responsibility of scientists.

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Our Activities

Our activities include studies of science and policy issues, regular public discussion meetings and public education events, and engagement with politicians and government officials. Our publications include in-depth scientific and policy research as well as public position statements and factual comment to the media.

Our Projects

Current projects include research on the ethics of armed robotic systems, a project on the potential impact of emerging technologies on nuclear-armed submarines, continued work to establish a British Disarmament Institute (BRINDI), participation in the Nuclear Weapons Policy Liaison Group, and research on future energy options. A history project is helping to document the history of the Pugwash conferences since the 1950s. We also host a public education programme, PeaceJam UK.

Membership

The British Pugwash Group is a membership organisation that brings together scientists and others concerned with international affairs and disarmament. There is a particular focus on encouraging engagement of young people, especially young scientists.

Latest publications, events and news
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Pugwash news in June: Iran visit, Prof Finney on killer robots, President on NPT

Published on 17th July 2019 in Current projects

Item 1: Iran visit – International Pugwash visited Tehran (Iran) for a two-day meeting to discuss the JCPOA (the ‘Iran Deal’) – Meeting notes and photos here

Item 2: Killer robots – Professor John Finney, of the British Pugwash Trust, has written for Responsible Science about the risks of ‘killer robots’ and the UN’s COMEST Commissions work on the issue – here

Item 3: NPT update – International Pugwash President Sergio Duarte published a commentary about the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty – here…

Pugwash at APPG on drones: ‘Drones, swarming and the future of warfare’

Published on 12th July 2019 in British Pugwash projects, Current projects, Emerging Technologies and the Impact on Anti-Submarine Warfare, Events, Remote Control Weaponry

Our Executive Committee member, Sebastian Brixey-Williams, spoke about some of his recent research on marine drones to a meeting organised by three different All Party Parliamentary Groups.

The presentation touched on some of his Pugwash-funded research on how trends in unmanned underwater vehicles might impact submarine-based nuclear weapons systems.…

Video: Student Pugwash at UK PONI Conference on British nuclear policy!

Published on 26th June 2019 in Student Young Pugwash Past Events, Student Young Pugwash Upcoming Events

Jana Wattenberg, the Student/Young Pugwash representative at Aberystwyth University, spoke at this year’s UK PONI Conference, the premier national forum for emerging experts in the nuclear policy community.

Her talk, on ‘The UK and the Ban Treaty’ was included in Session One on ‘UK Nuclear Policy and Practice’ (programme here)

Video below – Starts at 18:00 mins

…

British Pugwash Annual Report 2018

Published on 9th May 2019 in Annual reports, Publications

Key topics include: developments on the international scene, including US and Russia; Student / Young Pugwash activities; WMD Awareness – the podcast; Events; BPG development – eg. Business Development Plan; International Pugwash activities.…

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Student/Young Pugwash UK – Strategy Day!

Published on 8th April 2019 in Current projects, Forthcoming events, Student Young Pugwash Upcoming Events

Student/Young Pugwash (SYP) UK brings together students, researchers, practitioners and campaigners interested in international security and the interface between politics and science. We are a part of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, which uses the best social and natural science expertise to inform governments and the public about issues relating to Weapons of Mass Destruction – especially nuclear weapons – issues of war and peace, the environment and the social responsibility of scientists.…

British Pugwash Newsletter March 2019

Published on 27th March 2019 in Current projects, Newsletters

Topics covered in the British Pugwash Spring 2019 Newsletter include:

  • Delegation to Moscow to discuss arms control
  • Hypersonic missiles and strategic stability – new research
  • British Pugwash Annual General Meeting + Public Lecture
  • Student/Young Pugwash UK – Conference Report
  • Rotblat Memorial Lecture – A review
  • ‘Capturing Technology.
…

British Pugwash at ‘Capturing Technology. Rethinking Arms Control’ in Germany

Published on 20th March 2019 in British Pugwash projects, Publications, Recent events, Recently published

On 15th March 2019, a conference was held at the German Federal Foreign Office titled ‘Capturing Technology. Rethinking Arms Control’.

The aim of the Conference was to promote a well-informed international dialogue on the nature and implications of the current technological trends and to discuss whether new solutions are needed to ensure that the global arms control architecture can effectively capture new technologies.…

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Pugwash Peace & Disarmament Conference 2019 – multimedia report!

Published on 11th March 2019 in British Pugwash projects, Events, Recent events, Recently published, Student Young Pugwash Past Events, Student Young Pugwash Upcoming Events

Student / Young Pugwash UK held its fourth Annual Conference in February 2019, titled ‘Pugwash Peace & Disarmament Conference‘. It explored the prospects for arms control and disarmament over the coming years, with focuses on nuclear weapons and emerging technologies.…

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Student Pugwashites attended arms control winter course in Italy (ISODARCO 2019)

Published on 23rd January 2019 in Current projects, Recent events, Student Young Pugwash Past Events

Three members of Student/Young Pugwash UK attended the prestigious International School on Disarmament and Research on Conflicts (ISODARCO), held in Trento, Italy from 6th to 13th January 2019.

ISODARCO is an annual, intensive course for scholars and practitioners, featuring high-profile lecturers from around the world.…

Warwick meeting: 24/01/19 – ‘The Death of the Iran Deal and Nuclear Instability’

Published on 14th January 2019 in British Pugwash projects, Events, Recent events, Student Young Pugwash Past Events, Student Young Pugwash Upcoming Events

Blurb by Warwick Student/Young Pugwash:

A nuclear storm gathers over the Middle East.

Reckless American foreign policy has almost certainly doomed the Iran Nuclear Deal, the only instrument standing between Iran and the acquisition of the deadliest device to have ever existed.…

SYP UK papers from Kazakhstan conference published

Published on 21st December 2018 in British Pugwash projects, Recently published, Uncategorised

In August 2017, senior and youth members of International Pugwash met in Astana, Kazakhstan, for the 62nd Pugwash Conference – ‘Confronting New Nuclear Dangers’ (multimedia here).

Russian Pugwash has recently published a selection of papers from the conference, in their new publication ‘Global and regional security issues and prospects for cooperation’.…

Become a member of British Pugwash Group

Published on 23rd October 2018 in Current projects

British Pugwash (BP) is a membership organisation for scientists, social scientists, practitioners and others interested in peace, disarmament and other issues with scientific or technical aspects. Benefits of membership include:

  • Invitations throughout the year to events on cutting-edge issues
  • A regular newsletter
  • Opportunities to network with and instigate research projects with other members, including in our international Pugwash community
  • Free admission to SYP UK conferences

For background on BP activity, read:

British Pugwash Annual Report 2017

The fee for senior members of British Pugwash is £25 per year but this has been reduced to £5 per year for people under 30 years old.…

British Pugwash Newsletter October 2018

Published on 4th October 2018 in Newsletters

Topics covered in the British Pugwash Late 2018 Newsletter include:

  • The state of the Iran nuclear deal
  • Nuclear power – future prospects
  • Researchers oppose EU military research programme
  • Killer robots (guest piece by Article 36)
  • Upcoming events

Download here…

News from SYP UK – social media paper published, Nicolas in Russia

Published on 6th September 2018 in Current projects, Recently published, Student Young Pugwash Upcoming Events

Over the next twelve months, Student/Young Pugwash UK will be publishing ideas and research from our members about the risks and opportunities of emerging technologies.

Our first paper is a think piece by Dávid Almási, an undergraduate at University of Warwick, who considers whether changes in mass communication technologies will affect how governments justify but also respond to the possession and use of Weapons of Mass Destruction.…

British Pugwash Annual Report 2016

Published on 9th August 2017 in Annual reports, BRINDI, Climate Change and Energy Policy, Disarmament, Emerging Technologies and the Impact on Anti-Submarine Warfare, International Peace & Security, Joseph Rotblat: Life & Work, NPT, Recently published, Remote Control Weaponry
Key topics: developments on the international disarmament scene; Trident: emerging technologies; the NPT RevCon and the Disarmament Institute(BRINDI); science and ethics; energy policy and climate change