Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs
Pugwash was founded in 1957 by Bertrand Russell and Joseph Rotblat, following the release of the Russell-Einstein Manifesto two years earlier. That document expressed the opinion that "scientists should assemble in conference to appraise the perils that have arisen as a result of the development of weapons of mass destruction", and Pugwash was an attempt to create just such a forum, in order to facilitate communication between East and West by bringing together eminent scientists from both sides of the Iron Curtain.
A comprehensive literature review by the Urban Institute commissioned by Open Philanthropy found relatively strong evidence, from both primary and secondary sources, that Pugwash played a very important role in enabling the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) and the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABT).[2] Furthermore, in the 1980s Pugwash had a significant influence on Soviet policy: Mikhail Gorbachev reportedly told Rotblat that "Pugwash scientists were crucial in shaping his views against nuclear weapons."[3]
Evangelista, Matthew (2002) Unarmed Forces: The Transnational Movement to End the Cold War, Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press. "[T]he According to Paul Rubinson's literature review, this book is the"most groundbreaking work on Pugwash".[6]
Rubinson, Paul (2019) Pugwash literature review, Urban Institute.
In 1995, Pugwash and Rotblat were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts to diminish the part played by nuclear arms in international politics and, in the longer run, to eliminate such arms." (The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 1995)[1]
A comprehensive literature review by the Urban Institute commissioned by Open Philanthropy found relatively strong evidence, from both primary and secondary sources, that Pugwash played a very important role in enabling the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) and the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABT) (Rubinson 2019).[2] Furthermore, in the 1980s Pugwash had significant influence on Soviet policy: Mikhail Gorbachev reportedly told Rotblat that "Pugwash scientists were crucial in shaping his views against nuclear weapons." (Rubinson 2019: 10)[3]
Despite these and other achievements, Pugwash faced recurrent financial difficulties after severing its ties to Cyrus Eaton, the wealthy industrialist who provided initial funding for the conference series. Rotblat noted that, for many years, Pugwash "was run on a shoestring" (Rotblat 1972: 14),[4] and the author of the review concludes that "Pugwash seems to have been almost constantly in danger of insolvency." (Rubinson 2019: 18)[5]
BibliographyFurther reading
Evangelista, Matthew (2002) Unarmed Forces: The Transnational Movement to End the Cold War, Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press.
"the[T]he most groundbreaking work on Pugwash" (Rubinson 2019: 6).[6]
Rotblat, Joseph (1972) Scientists in the Quest for Peace: A History of the Pugwash Conferences, Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (1995) The Nobel Peace Prize 1995, The Nobel Prize, October 13.
Rubinson, Paul (2019) Pugwash literature review, Urban Institute.
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The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (1995) The Nobel Peace Prize 1995, The Nobel Prize, October 13.
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Rubinson, Paul (2019) Pugwash literature review, Urban Institute.
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Rubinson, Pugwash literature review, p. 10.
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Rotblat, Joseph (1972) Scientists in the Quest for Peace: A History of the Pugwash Conferences, Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, p. 14.
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Rubinson, Pugwash literature review, p. 18.
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Rubinson, Pugwash literature review, p. 6.
Pugwash was founded in 1957 by Bertrand Russell and Joseph Rotblat, following the release of the Russell-Einstein Manifesto two years earlier. That document expressed the opinion that "scientists should assemble in conference to appraise the perils that have arisen as a result of the development of weapons of mass destruction", and Pugwash was an attempt to create just such a forum, in order to facilitate communication between East and West by bringing together eminent scientists from East and West and in that way facilitate communication between leading thinkers on both sides of the Iron Curtain.
Rotblat, J.Joseph (1972) Scientists in the Quest for Peace: A History of the Pugwash Conferences, Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press.
The Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs (often abbreviated Pugwash) is an international organization focused on reducing global catastrophic risks posed by nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.
History
Pugwash was founded in 1957 by Bertrand Russell and Joseph Rotblat, following the release of the Russell-Einstein Manifesto two years earlier. That document expressed the opinion that "scientists should assemble in conference to appraise the perils that have arisen as a result of the development of weapons of mass destruction", and Pugwash was an attempt to create just such a forum, by bringing together eminent scientists from East and West and in that way facilitate communication between leading thinkers on both sides of the Iron Curtain.
In 1995, Pugwash and Rotblat were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts to diminish the part played by nuclear arms in international politics and, in the longer run, to eliminate such arms." (The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 1995)
Evaluation
A comprehensive literature review by the Urban Institute commissioned by Open Philanthropy found relatively strong evidence, from both primary and secondary sources, that Pugwash played a very important role in enabling the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) and the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABT) (Rubinson 2019). Furthermore, in the 1980s Pugwash had significant influence on Soviet policy: Mikhail Gorbachev reportedly told Rotblat that "Pugwash scientists were crucial in shaping his views against nuclear weapons." (Rubinson 2019: 10)
Despite these and other achievements, Pugwash faced recurrent financial difficulties after severing its ties to Cyrus Eaton, the wealthy industrialist who provided initial funding for the conference series. Rotblat noted that, for many years, Pugwash "was run on a shoestring" (Rotblat 1972: 14), and the author of the review concludes that "Pugwash seems to have been almost constantly in danger of insolvency." (Rubinson 2019: 18)
Bibliography
Evangelista, Matthew (2002) Unarmed Forces: The Transnational Movement to End the Cold War, Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press.
"the most groundbreaking work on Pugwash" (Rubinson 2019: 6)
Karnofsky, Holden (2019) History of philanthropy literature review: Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, Open Philanthropy, April 8.
Kraft, Alison, Holger Nehring & Carola Sachse (2018) The Pugwash Conferences and the global cold war: scientists, transnational networks, and the complexity of nuclear histories, Journal of Cold War Studies, vol. 20, pp. 4–30.
Lenz, John R. (1996) Pugwash and Russell’s legacy, The Bertrand Russell Society Quarterly, vol. 89, pp. 18–24.
Rotblat, J. (1972) Scientists in the Quest for Peace: A History of the Pugwash Conferences, Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (1995) The Nobel Peace Prize 1995, The Nobel Prize, October 13.
Rubinson, Paul (2019) Pugwash literature review, Urban Institute.
External links
Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs. Official website.
Related entries
Bertrand Russell | global catastrophic risk | nuclear disarmament movement | nuclear warfare | Russell-Einstein Manifesto | weapon of mass destruction
A comprehensive literature review by the Urban Institute commissioned by Open Philanthropy found relatively strong evidence, from both primary and secondary sources, that Pugwash played a
very importantkey role in enabling the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) and the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABT).[2] Furthermore, in the 1980s Pugwash had a significant influence on Soviet policy: Mikhail Gorbachev reportedly told Rotblat that "Pugwash scientists were crucial in shaping his views against nuclear weapons."[3]