5. Existential Risk, Creativity and Well-Adapted Science

This chapter explores the general tension between the distinct productive and the creative aspects of science, arguing that research programmes should be organised to favour one or the other depending on its epistemic situation, meaning the conditions of knowledge generation and the challenges facing it. In this case, this chapter discusses the research program of Existential Risk Studies, calling for the discipline to prioritise scientific creativity due to it involving unprecedented events, uncertainty and public engagement. The epistemic situation of the study of extreme global risk demands creativity, not scientific conservation which promotes competitiveness and productivity. This chapter therefore calls for a well-adapted science of existential risk which is multidisciplinary, pluralistic, and opportunistic; the research programme’s standards, incentives and expectations must be geared towards overcoming the challenges it faces.