Science for Peace and the need for Civil Clauses at universities and civilian research institutions

TL;DR

This paper discusses the importance of maintaining Civil Clauses in research institutions to ensure scientific activities remain peaceful and civilian, especially amid recent geopolitical challenges and debates.

Contribution

It provides a review of Civil Clauses adoption worldwide, analyzes emerging challenges, and advocates for preserving the civilian focus of research institutions.

Findings

Civil Clauses are widely adopted in research institutions.

Recent geopolitical shifts threaten the civilian nature of research.

Arguments support maintaining peaceful research focus.

Abstract

After the end of World War II, the commitment to confine scientific activities in universities and research institutions to peaceful and civilian purposes has entered, in the form of {\it Civil Clauses}, the charters of many research institutions and universities. In the wake of recent world events, the relevance and scope of such Civil Clauses has been questioned in reports issued by some governments and by the EU Commission, a development that opens the door to a possible blurring of the distinction between peaceful and military research. This paper documents the reflections stimulated by a panel discussion on this issue recently organized by the Science4Peace Forum. We review the adoptions of Civil Clauses in research organizations and institutions in various countries, present evidence of the challenges that are emerging to such Civil Clauses, and collect arguments in favour of maintaining the purely civilian and peaceful focus of public (non-military) research.