NIRT: Building Capacity for Social and Ethical Research and Education in Agrifood Nanotechnology

纳米技术-在分子水平上构建和操作的设备的发展-有望在经济的各个阶段彻底改变制造和分配方法。 农业-最古老和最成熟的经济部门之一-也不例外。 然而，最近试图引入重组DNA的革命性技术方法（即农业生物技术）已经与一些关键的伦理和社会问题，包括长期和分裂的社会冲突。 纳米技术对农业意味着什么？农业能教给纳米技术什么？ 该项目有三大目标：1）从农业食品生物技术的社会冲突中吸取教训，这可能对从事新纳米技术倡议的整个研究人员都有用; 2）在一个高级研究人员团队中建立新的多学科能力，该团队在与农业食品技术相关的社会和伦理问题方面具有丰富的经验，他们合作开发工程应用中的沟通策略，相对初级的研究人员开始了农业食品科学的社会和经济方面的研究计划;确定纳米技术在农业食品部门最有可能的应用（包括粮食分配和消费），并制定积极主动的战略，以了解和解决与之相关的社会和伦理问题。 第三个目标包括旨在制定概念和研究框架、制定治理愿景以及让利益攸关方和公众参与的活动。 作为这一目标的一部分，该项目将针对纳米技术科学家和工程师、农业食品利益攸关方和公众，编写关于农业食品纳米技术的社会和道德层面的教育材料。 这项研究将有助于理解工程，科学和技术在社会学，人类学，经济学和哲学学科的社会层面。 研究方法包括访谈、内容分析、网络论坛、分析性审议和哲学分析，每一种方法都由在以前的项目中使用过这些方法的团队成员部署。 将利用小组会议、专题讨论会以及小组领导的积极整合和管理来加强这些方法，并整合每种方法的结果。 这一过程的关键将是三个研讨会，所有团队成员和受邀嘉宾将参加，以解决a）农业食品生物技术的经验教训，B）农业食品纳米技术的新兴形式和c）与农业食品纳米技术相关的食品安全和产品质量的新兴标准的主题。该小组还将与欧洲研究小组合作，目前正在启动一个关于公众参与纳米技术管理和开发的项目。 研究活动将得到加强，开发一个在线课程，解决农业食品纳米技术中的社会和伦理问题，针对纳米技术科学家和工程师，农业生产者和更广泛的公众的外联/推广活动，以及在专业会议上提交的论文或研讨会。 该研究适用于纳米技术的非农业领域，以及其他形式的技术，论文和演讲将被结构化，以达到更广泛的受众。强调让利益相关者和公众参与这项研究，有望帮助创造一个更具参与性和民主性的场所，以便就农业纳米技术的应用进行决策。该提案涉及NSF纳米科学与工程项目征集（NSF 03-043）的“纳米尺度科学技术进步的社会和教育影响”主题。

Nanotechnology - the development of devices constructed and operating at a molecular level - promises to revolutionize methods of manufacture and distribution throughout all phases of the economy. Agriculture - among the oldest and most established sectors of the economy - will be no exception. However, the recent attempt to introduce the revolutionary technical methods of recombinant DNA (i.e. agricultural biotechnology) has been associated with a number of critical ethical and social issues, including a prolonged and divisive social conflict. What will nanotechnology mean for agriculture? And what can agriculture teach nanotechnology? This project intertwines three broad objectives: 1) Deriving lessons from the social conflict over agrifood biotechnology that may be useful to the entire range of researchers engaged in the new nanotechnology initiative; 2) Building a new multi-disciplinary competence among a team of senior researchers with extensive experience in social and ethical issues associated with agrifood technology, who have collaborated to develop communication strategies in engineering applications, and relatively junior researchers starting research programs in social and economic dimensions of agrifood science; and 3) Identifying the most likely applications of nanotechnology within the agrifood sector (including food distribution and consumption), and developing a proactive strategy for understanding and addressing social and ethical issues associated with them. This third objective encompasses activities aimed at developing a conceptual and research framework, developing visions for governance, and engaging stakeholders as well as the general public. As part of this objective, the project will develop materials for education on the social and ethical dimensions of agrifood nanotechnology directed to nanotechnology scientists and engineers, agrifood stakeholders, and the general public. This research will contribute to understanding the societal dimensions of engineering, science and technology in the disciplines of sociology, anthropology, economics and philosophy. Methods of research involve interviews, content analysis, web fora, analytic deliberation and philosophical analysis, each deployed by team members who have used these methods in prior projects. Team meetings, conduct of symposia, and active integration and management on the part of team leadership will be used to strengthen these methods and integrate the findings from each. Key to this process will be three workshops in which all team members and invited guests will participate, to address the themes of a) lessons from agrifood biotechnology, b) the emerging shape of agrifood nanotechnology and c) emerging standards for food safety and product quality associated with agrifood nanotechnology. The team will also collaborate with a European research team presently starting a project on public participation in the management and development of nanotechnology. The research activities will be augmented with the development of an online course addressing social and ethical issues in agrifood nanotech, outreach/extension activities directed to nanotechnology scientists and engineers, agricultural producers, and the broader public, and papers or symposia presented at professional meetings. The research is applicable to non-agricultural domains of nanotechnology, as well as to other forms of technology, and papers and presentations will be structured to reach this wider audience. The emphasis on involving stakeholders and members of the public in the conduct of this research promises to help create a more participatory and democratic venue for decision-making regarding applications of agricultural nanotechnology. This proposal addresses the "Societal and Educational Implications of Scientific and Technological Advances on the Nanoscale" theme of NSF's Nanoscale Science and Engineering program solicitation (NSF 03-043).