Articles | Volume 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/sand-3-43-2026
Special issue:
https://doi.org/10.5194/sand-3-43-2026
Special issue editorial
 | 
04 May 2026
Special issue editorial |  | 04 May 2026

Trust in Models – Open Letter from the Editors

Ingo Kock, Martin Navarro, Jens Eckel, Stephan Hotzel, and Carlo Dietl

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What do we need to trust in models?
Ingo Kock, Martin Navarro, Jens Eckel, Carsten Rücker, and Stephan Hotzel
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Cited articles

Kock, I., Navarro, M., Eckel, J., Rücker, C., and Hotzel, S.: What do we need to trust in models?, Saf. Nucl. Waste Disposal, 1, 303–302, 2021. 
NEA: Methods for Safety Assessment of Geological Disposal Facilities for Radioactive Waste: Outcomes of the NEA MeSA Initiative, Radioactive Waste Management, 6923, OECD Publishing, Issy-les-Moulineaux, France, 238 pp., ISBN 978-92-64-99190-3, 2012. 
Seidl, R., Becker, D.-A., Drögemüller, C., and Wolf, J.: Kommunikation und Wahrnehmung wissenschaftlicher Ungewissheiten, in: Entscheidungen in die weite Zukunft: Ungewissheiten bei der Entsorgung hochradioaktiver Abfälle, edited by: Eckhardt, A., Becker, F., Mintzlaff, V., Scheer, D., and Seidl, R., Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden, Wiesbaden, 313–336, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-42698-9_15, 2024. 
StandAG: Act on the Search for and Selection of a Site for a Disposal Facility for High-Level Radioactive Waste: Site Selection Act – StandAG, BGBl. I, 26, 1074–1100, 2017. 
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Short summary
In 2021, BASE headed a short workshop called “What do we need to do to trust in models?” at the first edition of the safeND symposium conference (safeND: "Safety of Nuclear Waste Diposal“; Kock et al. 2021). Because of the broad interest people showed in the topic, three consecutive workshops on the topic of “Trust in Models” (TiM) were held between 2022 and 2025.  In this Open Letter, we will present the main points of discussion.
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