Responsible Requirements Engineering in a VUCA World [Requirements]

Held in sunny Barcelona, REFSQ 2025 brought together researchers and practitioners around the theme of social responsibility in requirements engineering. As diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts are currently under threat, this year’s conference theme felt more relevant than ever. This column summarizes a panel discussion on responsibility. Given the mediator role of our field, what other software engineering discipline could be a better fit for responsible engineering? And this will just keep getting more important as the influence of technology on society increases. Happy reading!—Markus Borg