Letter to Nature

Scientists for Global Responsibility criticizes the disproportionate influence of military funding on science and technology, arguing that the Pentagon's R&D spending fuels arms races and diverts essential resources from addressing global crises such as climate change and poverty.

• The US Pentagon's annual research and development spending exceeds $75 billion, accounting for more than half of the total US government R&D budget, which the authors claim fuels an international arms race and undermines global security.
• High levels of military R&D spending divert financial and human resources from critical scientific areas and can lead to weapons proliferation, suggesting that the potential for civilian 'spin-outs' does not justify the current scale of military investment.
• The authors contend that the military's power to set the R&D agenda should be ended to allow scientists to address global issues including climate change, biodiversity loss, poverty, and food and energy insecurity.

APA

Scientists for Global Responsibility (2011). Letter to Nature. https://www.sgr.org.uk/resources/science-and-military-reply-nature

Chicago

Scientists for Global Responsibility. Letter to Nature. 2011. https://www.sgr.org.uk/resources/science-and-military-reply-nature.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Scientists for Global Responsibility |title=Letter to Nature |date=14 October 2011 |url=https://www.sgr.org.uk/resources/science-and-military-reply-nature |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{scientistsforglobalresponsibility2011letter, author = {{Scientists for Global Responsibility}}, title = {{Letter to Nature}}, publisher = {Scientists for Global Responsibility}, year = {2011}, month = oct, url = {https://www.sgr.org.uk/resources/science-and-military-reply-nature}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }