[SCAN] Science beyond the lab

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Title: Science beyond the lab  

Speaker: Mara Almeida

Affiliation: Science, Policy & Society, ITQB NOVA

Abstract:

Countries have increasingly to deal with complex issues which can range from economic growth to sustainable production, antibiotic-resistant ’superbugs’, or big data. Science and technology (S&T) has a crucial role in addressing many of the societal challenges we are now facing. Therefore, how can we move towards making proper use of S&T to manage these big societal challenges? This means taking careful account, in the creation of policy, not only of the scientific and technical aspects of the issue itself, but also of the not inconsiderable ethical and social implications its development and application may pose, as well as the feasibility and practicalities of any policy implementation.

In general, policies have the greatest chance to benefit the broader society when grounded in the best available knowledge and understanding of key scientific, technological and other facets underpinning them. In other words, an evidence-based policy-making approach contributes to a more informed decision-making, likely to result in better decisions. Given the complexity of many of the issues in question and their implications and impacts on different spheres of society, decisions related to policy making in the context of scientific and technological challenges benefit from input and, at times, direct involvement of a range of stakeholders, ranging from technical experts to the general public.

The aim of the work group ‘Science & Policy’ is to carrying out and support studies evaluating the impact of S&T on society and helping to inform policy-making processes in critical issues including sustainable consumption, implementation of genome technologies in clinical care and data protection and privacy. To support this aim, the group have been involved in different activities, fostering debate among scientists, technical experts, policy makers and the general public. We will present the work being done regarding some of the issues mentioned.