‘Institutional neutrality in climate change science must be accompanied by individual viewpoint diversity’

Abstract

Burgess's essay in defence of institutional neutrality addresses the very specific political culture that prevails in the United States. I agree with his defence, certainly for publicly funded institutions. But ensuring institutional neutrality is only part of how to regain public trust in climate change science. In this short commentary, I make an additional point: political neutrality at an institutional level must be backed by an institution's commitment to promoting and protecting individual viewpoint diversity. Indeed, an institution's neutrality can perhaps best be preserved by encouraging the widest range of individual viewpoint diversity among its members.