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Andy Stirling

Professor of Science & Technology Policy in the Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex
With a background in astronomy and 'science studies' and a masters in archaeology and social anthropology (Edinburgh 1984), my PhD is in 'science and technology policy' (Sussex 1995). Having worked earlier for Greenpeace (including as an international and national board-member), I’ve also been employed as a building labourer, laboratory technician, hospital porter and factory, farm and mental health care worker.

My 'transdisciplinary' research, teaching and policy advisory work at the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex focuses on issues of power, uncertainty, diversity and democracy across different areas of science, technology and innovation. A member of the Sussex Energy Group, I was formerly Research Director for SPRU (2006-13) and the Sussex Management School (2009-2012) and for fifteen years (2006-2021) co-directed the ESRC Centre at Sussex on Social Technological and Environmental Pathways to Sustainability (STEPS).

Formerly a member of the Research Council of the ESRC and of the Sociology sub-panel in the 2020 Research Excellence Framework, I have served as an advisor for the UK, for other national governments and for the European Commission on issues including energy policy, radioactive waste, nuclear power, toxic substances, GM foods, uncertainties, science advice, ethics of new technologies and science and society. I am presently an independent advisor to the official evaluation of the UK Government's Nuclear Innovation Programme.

Global Geopolitics Series

Military interests are pushing new nuclear power – and the UK government has finally admitted it

Jan 20, 2024 06:10 am UTC| Insights & Views

The UK government has announced the biggest expansion of the [nuclear] sector in 70 years. This follows years of extraordinarily expensive support. Why is this? Official assessments acknowledge nuclear performs poorly...

Economy

Some experts say the US economy is on the up, but here’s why voters don’t think so

Many Americans are gloomy about the economy, despite some data saying it is improving. The Economist even took this discussion to TikTok. When its US editor John Prideaux examined inflation, wage and employment numbers,...

Electric air taxis are on the way – quiet eVTOLs may be flying passengers as early as 2025

Imagine a future with nearly silent air taxis flying above traffic jams and navigating between skyscrapers and suburban droneports. Transportation arrives at the touch of your smartphone and with minimal environmental...

Electricity from farm waste: how biogas could help Malawians with no power

In sub-Saharan Africa, over 600 million people (more than 50% of the population) are without access to electricity. Malawi has one of the worlds lowest electricity access rates just 14.1% of the total population have...

High interest rates aren’t going away anytime soon – a business economist explains why

The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at its May 1, 2024, policy meeting, dashing the hopes of potential homebuyers and others who were hoping for a cut. Not only will rates remain at their current level a...

US long-term care costs are sky-high, but Washington state’s new way to help pay for them could be nixed

If you needed long-term care, could you afford it? For many Americans, especially those with a middle-class income and little savings, the answer to that question is absolutely not. Nursing homes charge somewhere...

Politics

Donald Trump Allegedly Offers Oil Execs a Deal to Scrap EV Incentives for $1B Donation

Former President Donald Trump reportedly proposed a $1 billion deal to oil executives, offering to end electric vehicle (EV) subsidies in return for campaign funding, according to The Washington Post. This move underscores...

Taiwan is experiencing millions of cyberattacks every day

Taiwan stands out as a beacon of democracy, innovation and resilience in an increasingly autocratic region. But this is under growing threat. In recent years, China has used a variety of grey zone tactics to pressure...

What the Supreme Court is doing right in considering Trump’s immunity case

Following the nearly three-hour oral argument about presidential immunity in the Supreme Court on April 25, 2024, many commentators were aghast. The general theme, among legal and political experts alike, was a...

US Urges China, Russia to Reject AI Control in Nuclear Arms, Align with Global Norms

Paul Dean, a senior U.S. arms control official, emphasized the critical need for China and Russia to join the U.S. in declaring that humans will always decide on the deployment of nuclear weapons, not artificial...

US election: why it’s not the protesters’ votes that the Democrats should worry about

As hundreds of New York police officers in riot gear were called in to clear away a student protest at Columbia University on Tuesday night, the university president Nemat Shafik was saying she had no choice but to take...

Science

IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects

About a trillion tiny particles called neutrinos pass through you every second. Created during the Big Bang, these relic neutrinos exist throughout the entire universe, but they cant harm you. In fact, only one of them is...

The Mars Sample Return mission has a shaky future, and NASA is calling on private companies for backup

A critical NASA mission in the search for life beyond Earth, Mars Sample Return, is in trouble. Its budget has ballooned from US$5 billion to over $11 billion, and the sample return date may slip from the end of this...

Dark matter: our new experiment aims to turn the ghostly substance into actual light

A ghost is haunting our universe. This has been known in astronomy and cosmology for decades. Observations suggest that about 85% of all the matter in the universe is mysterious and invisible. These two qualities are...

A Nasa rover has reached a promising place to search for fossilised life on Mars

While we go about our daily lives on Earth, a nuclear-powered robot the size of a small car is trundling around Mars looking for fossils. Unlike its predecessor Curiosity, Nasas Perseverance rover is explicitly intended to...

The rising flood of space junk is a risk to us on Earth – and governments are on the hook

A piece of space junk recently crashed through the roof and floor of a mans home in Florida. Nasa later confirmed that the object had come from unwanted hardware released from the international space station. The 700g,...

Technology

Binance and KuCoin Gain FIU Registration in India

In a significant move towards regulatory compliance, Binance and KuCoin have been officially registered with Indias Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). This registration signals a major shift in the Indian cryptocurrency...

Former SEC Commissioner Criticizes Broad Crypto Definitions, Lubin Challenges SEC

At the TokenizeThis 2024 conference, former SEC Commissioner Troy Paredes criticized the SEC for its expansive interpretation of digital assets as securities. Concurrently, Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin at the F.T. Live...

Pantera Capital Sets Record with Massive Investment in Telegram's TON

Pantera Capital has announced a record-breaking investment in Telegrams TON blockchain, marking its largest commitment to date and signifying robust confidence in blockchains future. This strategic move underscores a major...

Xiaomi SU7 Fails After 39km, Company Offers Compensation and Replacement

In a recent setback, a Xiaomi SU7 electric vehicle owned by Mr. Wen malfunctioned after just 39 kilometers, leading to significant customer dissatisfaction. Xiaomi has responded by offering compensation and agreeing to...

OpenAI Set to Unveil Google Rival Search Tool Next Monday, Sources Reveal

OpenAI, in partnership with Microsoft, is slated to announce a groundbreaking AI-powered search tool on May 13, challenging Googles dominance just a day before its major I/O conference, according to sources. OpenAIs...