Dear friends,

A primary reason GCRI works across the range of global catastrophic risks is to address the many important points of intersection between the risks. These points of intersection often are neglected by communities that focus on one risk at a time.

This month, we announce a paper on the intersection of planetary defense and violent conflict, especially nuclear war. Planetary defense refers to protection against asteroids, comets, and meteors. One point of intersection is the proposed use of nuclear explosives to target Earthbound asteroids and comets. Another is the possibility that the explosions caused by asteroid or comet collisions could be mistaken for violent attacks, especially nuclear attacks. A third point of intersection is that planetary defense programs can serve as a model for successful management of global risks including violent conflict. The paper shows the importance of cross-risk work on global catastrophic risk.

The paper is Accounting For Violent Conflict Risk In Planetary Defense Decisions, published in Acta Astronautica.

Sincerely,
Seth Baum,
Executive Director

CSER Talk

GCRI Executive Director Seth Baum gave a talk remotely on September 21 on GCRI’s recently published and in-progress work to the Cambridge Centre for the Study of Existential Risk (CSER). The talk focused on GCRI’s work on AI and asteroid risk, as well as on issues in risk quantification and practical risk governance.

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