SOCIAL DECISION-MAKING PROCESS ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 2/3/2009, “NE24” Seminar Class at UC Berkeley Kohta Juraku (The University of Tokyo)

Who am I?  Project Assistant Professor of Dept. of Nuclear Engineering and Management, UT  Sociologist of Science and Technology  Research interests:  Public Interests and Science and Technology  Social Decision-making Process on Siting of Energy Facilities  Social Scientific Literacy Education for Technical People

Today’s Talk  3 Key Questions: 1. What is “Social Decision-making”? 2. Why S&T propose many problems in “Social Decision-making”? 3. Why should the “Process” make more participatory?

1. What is “Social Decision-making”?

Rethinking“ Decision-making”  Example 1: To attend this “NE24” class  Who make a decision?  How to make a decision?  What kind of information is need to make a decision?  How many people are affected by the decision?  Is this a “Social Decision-making”?

Rethinking“ Decision-making”  Example 2: To buy a new car  Who make a decision?  How to make a decision?  What kind of information is need to make a decision?  How many people are affected by the decision?  Is this a “Social Decision-making”?

Rethinking“ Decision-making”  Example 3: Presidential election  Who make a decision?  How to make a decision?  What kind of information is need to make a decision?  How many people are affected by the decision?  Is this a “Social Decision-making”?

Rethinking“ Decision-making”  Example 4: National security policy  Who make a decision?  How to make a decision?  What kind of information is need to make a decision?  How many people are affected by the decision?  Is this a “Social Decision-making”?

Rethinking“ Decision-making”  Example 5: Brain death organ transplant  Who make a decision?  How to make a decision?  What kind of information is need to make a decision?  How many people are affected by the decision?  Is this a “Social Decision-making”?

What is “Social Decision-making”?  Collective Decision  Result of a series of complicated interactions of involved actors: Decision-making Process  Formal “Politics” is a part of the process  Public Interests  Decision have effects on everyone in society  Path Dependency  Possible to change the decision later, but often very difficult to do it

2. Why S&T propose many problems in “Social Decision-making”?

Changes in Science and Technology  Integration of Science and Technology  Astounding progress of Technology in 20 th century  S&T become national projects  Manhattan Project (1940s)  V. Bush(1945) “Science ： the endless frontier”  Emergence of Military-industrial Complex (1950s-) “Space Race” (1960s)  Human Genome Project (1980s-2000s)

Changes in Science and Technology  Ethical issues arising from advanced S&T  Bioethics: organ transplant, reproductive medicine, ES cell research…  Conflict against natural environment and/or human health  Chemical pollution (1960s-) R. Carson (1962) Silent Spring  Medicine disaster (1950s-)  Major nuclear Accidents (1970s-)  Global environment problem (1980s-) Ozone layer depletion (1980s-1990s) Desertification (1980s-) Climate change (2000s)

S&T becomes public issue  Both of Positive and Negative impacts of S&T are involved with…  Social Welfare  National Policy, National Security  Sense of Ethics  Global Economy  Etc.  S&T may change society dramatically  It means S&T now become the Public Issue

Decision-making calls for expertise  To make the best decision about S&T issue…  Ordinary people never know deeply on S&T  Even politicians or bureaucrats are also  So, we should consult “experts”  “Experts” are invited to committees to provide solution  Politics and administration make their decisions, referring to their consultation  Public are assured by those expertise-based decision  Emergence of technocracy

3. Why should the “Process” make more participatory?

Science provide the unique solution?  An essential assumption of technocracy  “Science (scientist) show us the unique solution”  Well, so, can science (scientist) answer these questions? 1. Can nuclear fission use for power generation? 2. Do we have sufficient knowledge to develop nuclear power station? 3. Is the current safety measures sufficient to assure public health? 4. Should we promote nuclear power utilization?

Science and Trans-Science  A. M. Weinberg (1972) “Science and Trance- Science”  Definition of “Trans-Scientific” issues: questions which can be asked of science and yet which cannot be answered by science 1 st question in the previous page: scientific issue 2 nd question: maybe scientific issue (somebody may argue it is trans-scientific) 3 rd and 4 th questions: trans-scientific issues  The essential assumption of technocracy is now questioned

Society is also changed  The needs proposed by society are also changed  The diversification of values (in post-modern society) Simple utilitarianism is no longer the common-sense Rationales are also diversified  Public have many experiences on negative effects of S&T  Public changed their views on S&T  An result of opinion poll in Japan “We should subdue the nature”: 35% (‘68)  5% (‘03) “We should utilize the nature”: 40% (‘68)  42% (‘03) “We should follow the nature”: 20% (‘68)  45% (‘03)

Decision-making under uncertainty  We have to make decisions involved with S&T under the very uncertain situation  S&T can no longer provide the unique solution We cannot depend on technocracy  Public opinion doesn’t get together easily Simple utilitarianism doesn’t function well as the HCF  But, the progress of S&T and change of society propose serious questions continuously  It means the crisis of legitimacy and rationality of decision-making process on S&T issues

Re-democratization of S&T  At this point, we need the alternative principle of decision-making process on S&T issues  We public cannot delegate the decision for experts  They experts should be liberated from too heavy burden: To answer the trans-scientific question by scientific way  We should develop the way to promote the public participation and to make it effective

Methods of Participatory Decision-making  Methods of consensus building  Consensus Conference  Scenario Workshop  Future Search  Methods of capacity building of public  Science Shop  Science Café  The way of implementation of these methods to social decision-making process is the remained question for STS (Science, Technology and Society) studies

An Japanese case: as an exercise  The site of high-level nuclear waste disposal plant is not decided in Japan  The organization in charge provides “participatory and open” siting process scheme  They don’t offer the siting plan to local area. They are waiting for the voluntary application from local area.  This application is for the preliminary investigation selection. Not for the siting itself.  Some areas consider the application. But no area applied yet.  A mayor submitted the application, but residents protested very strongly. He was obliged to resign.