Mini-symposium

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Mini-symposium The management of uncertainty in
risk science and policy, World Congress on
Risk Brussels, 22-25 June 2003. Organised by
Silvio Funtowicz, Knowledge Assessment
Methodologies Sector, European Commission Joint
Research Centre with contributions from Jeroen
van der Sluijs, Copernicus Institute,
Utrecht John Grin, University of
Amsterdam Claudia E. Natenzon Univeristy of
Buenos Aires Marcelo Firpo Porto, National
School of Public Health, Rio de Janeiro Matthieu
Craye and Andrea Saltelli, JRC
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Silvios thoughts on the symposium
Risk governance and the role of science when
facts are uncertain, values in dispute, stakes
high and decision urgent Inversion of the hard
science, soft policy judgements relation The
management of uncertainty as an interface between
science, policy and society. -gt Mathieus
reflexive uncertainty management Changes in the
knowledge infrastructure -gt John Grins paper
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Silvios thoughts on the symposium
Changes in scientific and technologic expertise
(Jereoens handbook and Andreas sensitivity
analysis) as well as in the way a plurality of
knowledge in involved into policy processes
(Claudia Natenzons paper). Cultural,
socio-economic, politic and institutional
ingredients of vulnerability (Marcelo Firpo
Porto)
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Uncertainty. Høeg.
Uncertainty is not an accident of the scientific
method, but its substance. Peter Høeg, a Danish
novelist, writes in Borderliners (Høeg, 1995)
"That is what we meant by science. That both
question and answer are tied up with uncertainty,
and that they are painful. But that there is no
way around them. And that you hide nothing
instead, everything is brought out into the
open".