Ethical Decision Making

Siddhartha Roy, an environmental engineer and science communicator, considers the recent water crisis in Flint, Michigan, in his talk on science, and how the professionals there didn't do what they could have to protect the people being harmed by it.

As someone who helped to prove that the water in Flint was contaminated with high levels of toxic lead, Roy is able to speak from experience throughout his talk on science as he shows why research should always be dedicated to the good of the public.

Roy considers how greed caused the crisis to arise in the first place, and how it took the help of researchers outside of the area to bring attention to the severity of the problem. By substantiating the claims made by the residents of Flint, these scientists and advocates were able to generate change and give some justice to those who were harmed by it.

With this, Roy shows how whole communities have been dehumanized and disregarded by professionals, and that it's of extreme importance for researchers to point out flaws for the good of the public.