How ethical are biofuels?

In addition to being a world leader in plant and cereal biology – both in the UK and Malaysia – researchers at The University of Nottingham are concerned with studying the social and ethical dimensions of the transition to sustainable biofuels.

In the race to develop technological alternatives to fossil fuel use, it is feared that unintended environmental damage may occur and limited resources diverted to crops for fuels may contribute to poverty, starvation and social conflict over land use. Second-generation approaches therefore aim to develop novel techniques for converting non-food feedstocks to fuel.  

Highlights

As previous experience with bioscience innovations has shown, it has become increasingly important for scientists to engage with social and ethical concerns early in the research process.

As a lecturer in Science and Technology Studies in the School of Sociology and Social Policy, Dr Sujatha Raman directs research on social and ethical dimensions within the Lignocellulosic Conversion to bioEthanol (LACE) project in collaboration with Dr Alison Mohr, Senior Research Fellow in Sociology and Social Policy, and Dr Kate Millar, Director of the Centre for Applied Bioethics in the School of Biosciences.

Using ethnographic observation, semi-structured interviews and analysis of key documents, the work:

• Maps different sources of knowledge, uncertainties and perceptions around bioenergy and its wider impacts
• Examines the network of institutions and technologies around second-generation biofuels, and explores scenarios of how specific technologies are expected to become embedded
• Conducts public and stakeholder engagement workshops to explore different understandings of the implications of bioenergy research
• Creates dialogue between LACE researchers, stakeholders and the lay public on ethical concerns and expectations regarding bioenergy futures.