“Ours is...a ‘spaceship earth,’ a frail vehicle with finite resources of nourishment and regeneration, with no airlocks for anyone against another’s fouling of the atmosphere, no watertight compartments to prevent flooding from a polluted ocean; a world whose physical frontiers have been reached, and, in many ways, exceeded.”
Sargent Shriver spoke these words in April 1975 during a lecture tour of the former Soviet Union. As we celebrate Earth Week 43 years later, we recognize the importance and increased urgency of his message.
In a public address entitled Toward an International Ethic of Science, Sargent Shriver stresses the importance of collaboration and of working to acknowledge and preserve “our common existence.” We invite you to read this remarkably forward-thinking speech in its entirety. It deals with many issues around research in medicine, technology, and other sciences in ways that still feel contemporary. It also demonstrates Sarge’s talent in the area of international diplomacy, as he skillfully focuses on common ideals and interests for his Russian audience.
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