I've been asked to serve as guest editor for an upcoming edition of the Journal of Evolution and Technology, a peer-reviewed electronic journal published by the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies. (Full disclosure: I've been a senior fellow at IEET for seven years.) The topic of the edition is, as the title of this post suggests, the ethics of geoengineering. Link to the full call for papers.

Here's a bit about what we're looking for:

For this issue of JET we would like to solicit papers exploring both the proposed geoengineering methods, and ethical, social and political questions that must be considered before they are explored and undertaken. Which methods make sense to explore? How can we keep the pressure on to shift to renewable and sustainable forms of energy, agriculture and manufacturing if we avail ourselves of this techno-fix? What agencies should be empowered to research and undertake these initiatives? What risks and benefits should be considered? What kinds of evidence and modeling should be required before they are undertaken, and at what point should they be deployed?

And the relevant info:

Important dates

Submission deadline: Nov 1, 2013
Notification of acceptance/rejection: Feb 1, 2014
Final revision deadline: March 1, 2014
Publication: Spring/Summer 2014

[...]

Length and Style

We anticipate that this issue will contain around 10 papers and, as a working guide, the papers should be between 4000 and 12,000 words in length. Instructions on format and style are here: http://jetpress.org/authors.html

Submission procedure

Manuscripts must be submitted electronically in Microsoft Word to cascio@openthefuture.com

Review process

Each submission will ideally receive two reviews. Completed reviews will be forwarded to the corresponding authors. Please suggest up to three external reviewers to facilitate the review process.

Here's what I'll be looking for: arguments and discussions that directly address the underlying dilemma driving the consideration of geoengineering, namely, the growing possibility that dire effects from climate disruption will happen faster than any carbon emission cuts could stop. Papers that just assert that geoengineering is bad and we should feel bad for talking about it, or that geoengineering is great because it will mean we don't have to waste money on cutting carbon will very likely find themselves stuck in a spam filter.

I've written quite a bit about the politics and ethics of geoengineering, but I know that I'm (a) not the only one thinking about it, and (b) not in possession of a monopoly on good ideas. I'd really love to see submissions of pieces that change my mind.