Fundamental science and sustainable development: what should change in our research ?

The degradation of our environment and the persistence of economic and social inequalities at all levels are realities that challenge the world of research, well beyond the specialists in these subjects. In the context of the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development, we wanted to address the ethical issues that these findings raise for the research community, both on a theoretical and practical level.

The environmental crisis once again illustrates that the distinction between basic and applied sciences is primarily linked to the context of a given era: knowledge that was considered very basic in the past is now highly topical, while research that is far removed from everyday life bases its social utility on the promise of future applications that would enable us to overcome the ecological challenge.

Ecological awareness is leading to increasingly strong criticism of research topics whose consequences are or could be environmentally harmful; and some are coming to question the usefulness of basic research, which is not considered a priority in the face of the emergency.