Research projects
	Science and precaution in an interactive management of technological risks - for the scientific support programme for sustainable development of the Federal Science Policy Office (SfPPS) (2002-2005)

• STEM (Studiecentrum Technologie, Energie en Milieu), from the TEW faculty in the University of Antwerpen (RUCA-UFSIA): Marian Deblonde, Lieve Goorden (coordinator);
• The Work & Technologies Research Centre of the Fondation Travail-Université (Namur): Françoise Warrant, Valérie-Anne Barriat, Gérard Valenduc.

Objectives of the project

This project deals with the relations between scientific knowledge and the precautionary principle. Can this precautionary principle be integrated in scientific processes? Or does the precaution starts where science stops? Are science and precaution opposed or are they linked? The answers to these questions can help to develop and legitimate effective methods to act at the borders of science and policy. The intrinsic characteristics of the problems linked to sustainable development (uncertainty, irreversibility of consequences, plurality of values) require a new approach of the contribution of scientific knowledge to the development of policies in this field.

Downloadable documents

All project reports are downloadable from the SPIRE web site. Most of reports are written either in French, or in Dutch, or partially in French and partially in Dutch. The final report is available in English.

SPIRE Final report Barriat V-A., Deblonde M., Goorden L., Valenduc G., Warrant F., Science and Precaution in Interactive Risk Evaluation, SPSD-II, Federal Science Policy Office, Brussels, 2005 (112 pages) Available in paper version (to be ordered to the Federal science Policy Office, free of charge) or in electronic version PDF (445 ko).