In this fireside chat, Dr Mackenzie Graham (Ethox/Kavli) will discuss the role of ethical values in scientific research with Professor Dame Carol Robinson (Director, Kavli Oxford) and Professor Michael Parker (Director, Ethox), their experiences of where ethics and science can complement one another, the challenges/benefits of collaboration between scientists/non-scientists, and their views on some of the broad ethical challenges facing basic research today (e.g., reproducibility, public trust in science).

Aim: To demonstrate where ethics fits into the work of scientists conducting basic research, and why it is important for them to think about the role of ethical values in their work.

Discoveries in basic science often do not have immediate practical applications. For this reason, it is easy to see basic science as removed from genuine societal or ethical concerns. ‘Ethics’ is often most readily associated with regulation and governance (i.e., approval from research ethics committee, human tissue authority), or as a necessary burden to scientific research (i.e., ethics portion of grants application).

Ethical and societal values have an important role to play in the practice of basic science, a role that often goes unacknowledged.

In late 2024 we were awarded $250,000 from the Kavli Foundation, USA in support of our aim to establish an Ethics Hub embedded within Kavli Oxford, exploring ethics in initiating open discussions and developing our daily scientific practice of responsible research. Through this work we are proud to support the work of the Kavli Foundation’s Ethics, Science and the Public projects.

*Seating is limited to 80 and entry to the building is strictly on presentation of University Bodleian card