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UPSTREAM PUBLIC E NGAGEM ENT?
SOME THOUGHTS ON THE
»SHAPING FUTURE« PROJECT
Erich Griessler, Institut für Höhere Studien
public engagement responsible research and innovation science and technolog y
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start about its ethical as well as environmental and societal repercussions. One of the seve- UDOGHğQLWLRQVRI55,FDOOVIRUUHVHDUFKDQGLQQRYDWLRQWKDWLVRULHQWHGWRZDUGVWKHULJKWLP- SDFWVWKDWLVDQWLFLSDWRU\UHĠH[LYHLQFOXVLYHDQGUHVSRQVLYH2ZHQHWDODQG But how can these claims be realized? Isn’t it the scientists, experts and designers who GHYHORSWKHULJKWDQGğWWLQJWHFKQRORJLHVDQ\ZD\",QFRQWUDVWWRVROHUHOLDQFHRQH[SHUWV DGYRFDWHVRISXEOLFHQJDJHPHQWLQUHVHDUFKDQGLQQRYDWLRQSHUFHLYHWKHLQFOXVLRQRIOD\- people as the silver bullet to achieving technologies that are both accepted and responsible.
But how can public engagement in research and innovation be practiced? What processes DUHDYDLODEOHDQGDSSOLFDEOHWRLQYROYHOD\SHRSOHXVHUVDQGFRQVXPHUVLQXSVWUHDPSXEOLF HQJDJHPHQWLQUHVHDUFKDQGLQQRYDWLRQDVHDUO\DVSRVVLEOH"+RZFDQWKH\FRRSHUDWHZLWK VFLHQWLVWVHQJLQHHUVDQGGHVLJQHUV"+RZFDQWKH\XQORFNGLVFRYHUDQGH[SORUHWKHLUZLVKHV ex periences, perspectives and knowledge and make them available to research and inno- vation?
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133
Upstream public engagement?
VFLHQFH0DVVLPLDQR%XFFKLDQG)HGHULFR1HUHVLQLGHğQHSXEOLFHQJDJHPHQW LQDQDOOHQFRPSDVVLQJDWWHPSWDVŊĽWKHGLYHUVLğHGVHWRIVLWXDWLRQVDQGDFWLYLWLHVPRUH RUOHVVVSRQWDQHRXVRUJDQL]HGDQGVWUXFWXUHGZKHUHE\QRQH[SHUWVEHFRPHLQYROYHGDQG SURYLGH WKHLU RZQ LQSXW WR DJHQGD VHWWLQJ GHFLVLRQPDNLQJ SROLF\IRUPLQJ DQG NQRZ- OHGJHSURGXFWLRQSURFHVVHVʼn:LWKLQWKLVGHğQLWLRQWKHShaping Future project (Heidings- felder et al. 2015a, 2015b) is situated in the participation of knowledge production in its incipient phase. The project, which is described in other parts of this volume in detail, set RXWWRLQYROYHDGLYHUVHVHWRIOD\SHRSOHLQWKHGHYHORSPHQWRIIXWXUHWHFKQRORJLHV
,Q D ğUVW VWHS WKH UHVHDUFKHUV IURP )UDXQKRIHU &HQWHU IRU 5HVSRQVLEOH 5HVHDUFK DQG ,QQRYDWLRQ&H55,RUJDQL]HGDVHULHVRIZRUNVKRSVZLWKDQXPEHURIOD\SHRSOHWRH[SORUH their wishes and claims for future human-machine interaction in the areas of health, work, VRFLDOUHODWLRQVKLSVDQGPRELOLW\7KHVDPSOHLQFOXGHGDOWRJHWKHUOD\SHRSOHRIGLIIHUHQW DJHJURXSVWR\HDUVROGDVZHOODVEURDGVRFLDODQGSURIHVVLRQDOEDFNJURXQGV7KH ZRUNVKRSVXVHGPHWKRGVRIHQDEOLQJVSDFHVVWRU\WHOOLQJSURWRW\SLQJQDUUDWLYHREMHFWV WRPDNHWKHOD\SDUWLFLSDQWVGLVFRYHUDQGH[SORUHWKHLULPDJLQDWLRQVDQGGHVLUHVWRZDUGV future technologies. In a second step the research team clustered the outcomes of these ZRUNVKRSVŋLHQDUUDWLYHREMHFWVŋLQHLJKWJUHDWHUğHOGVRIQHHGE\XVLQJTXDQWLWD- tive and qualitative methods of empirical social science and design research. The clusters ZHUHFXUDWHGOLIHPRELOHVKHOWHUGLJLWDOHPSDWK\KXPDQPDFKLQHPLPLFU\',<KHDOWK WUDQVIHUDEOH PHPRULHV DGDSWLYH HQYLURQPHQWV DQG FDPRXĠDJH WHFKQRORJ\ 7KHVH FOXV- WHUVZHUHWDNHQLQWRDQLQWHUGLVFLSOLQDU\H[SHUWZRUNVKRSRI)UDXQKRIHUHQJLQHHUVIURP different institutes and were used as impulses to develop future technologies that are EDVHGLQOD\SHRSOHłVQHHGVDQGLPDJLQDWLRQV7KHHQJLQHHUVGHYHORSHGHLJKWURDGPDSV for future technologies, which designers then transformed into four speculative proto- W\SHV WKDW FRSH ZLWK DLU SROOXWLRQ +XPDQ &DUERQ FUHDWH VXVWDLQDEOH KRXVHV XVLQJ FDWHUSLOODUFRFRRQV$GDSWLYH(QYLURQPHQWFRQYH\HPRWLRQVDQGH[SHULHQFHVIURPRQH SHUVRQWRDQRWKHUE\XVLQJEDFWHULD*XWPHQWRUDQGFRQWULEXWHWRKXPDQHQKDQFHPHQW +HDOLQJ 0XVFOH 3DWFK 7KHVH REMHFWV ZHUH ğQDOO\ GLVSOD\HG DQG GLVFXVVHG DW D SXEOLF H[KLELWLRQWRVXSSRUWSXEOLFUHĠHFWLRQRQQHZDQGHPHUJLQJDUHDVRIUHVHDUFKDQGWHFK- QRORJ\SDUWLFXODUO\WKHLUSRWHQWLDOVRFLDODQGHWKLFDOUDPLğFDWLRQV
The Shaping FutureSURMHFWPRWLYDWHGOD\SHRSOHWRLPDJLQHH[SODLQDQGH[SHULPHQWZLWK potential future technologies. It made engineers and designers work with these imagi- nations and created case studies of distant future technologies. It is less the actual spe- FXODWLYHSURWRW\SHVZKLFKFUHDWHGSX]]OHPHQWVXUSULVHFXULRVLW\DQGGLIIHUHQWGHJUHHVRI DFFHSWDQFHEXWWKHSURFHVVDQGPHWKRGVWKDW&H55,VNLOOIXOO\DSSOLHGDQGFRPELQHGLQ WKLVSURMHFWZKLFKDUHLQVHYHUDOZD\VWKLVSURMHFWłVJURXQGEUHDNLQJRXWFRPH
134
Upstream public engagement? Shaping Future is basic research in the social sciences about how to realize upstream pub-
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Shaping Future experimented with a set and combination of methods that should help OD\SHRSOHWRXQORFNGLVFRYHUDQGH[SUHVVWKHLUQHHGVZLVKHVUHTXLUHPHQWVDQGIHHOLQJV towards future technologies. These included design thinking, public engagement and WHFKQRORJ\ DVVHVVPHQW PHWKRGV 7KH FUHDWLRQ RI QDUUDWLYH REMHFWV ŋ OHWWLQJ OD\ SDUWL- cipants come up with, shape, draw, touch, experience, experiment with, explain and develop their own objects – enabled them to express and articulate their needs and imaginations. The Shaping Future process was well orchestrated in terms of when to bring in which actor, in what ZD\ DQG LQ ZKLFK VHWWLQJ )RU LQVWDQFH WKH &H55, WHDP GHOLEHUDWHO\ VHSDUDWHG H[SHUWV IURP OD\SHRSOH LQ WKH ZRUNVKRS SKDVH LQ RUGHU WR HQDE- OH WKH ODWWHU WR H[SUHVV WKHPVHOYHV IUHHO\ DQG XQLQKLELWHG E\ VHHPLQJO\ VXSHULRU H[SHUW knowledge. Shaping Future LV KLJKO\ LQQRYDWLYH LQ WZR ZD\V ,W LQYROYHG H[SHUWV DQG OD\SHRSOH LQ XSVWUHDP SXEOLF HQJDJHPHQW DQG FRPELQHG H[LVWLQJ PHWKRGV LQWR D QHZ ZHOORUFKHVWUDWHGSURFHVV([SHUWVDQGOD\SHRSOHRIWHQZRUNHGVHSDUDWHO\EXWEXLOWXSRQ HDFKRWKHUłVFRQWULEXWLRQV7KLVVHSDUDWLRQKHOSHGOD\SHRSOHWRDUWLFXODWHWKHLUSKDQWDVLHV DQGZLVKHVXQLQWLPLGDWHGE\H[SHUWV'HVLJQHUVDQGHQJLQHHUVFRXOGWKHQWDNHXSWKHVH LGHDVDQGWUDQVIRUPWKHPLQWRIXWXUHWHFKQRORJLHVURDGPDSVDQGVSHFXODWLYHSURWRW\SHV ,QWKLVZD\WKHSURFHVVDQGWRROVDSSOLHGGLGQRWQHJOHFWDQGOHYHOWKHYHU\SDUWLFXODUDQG GLVWLQFWNQRZOHGJHVNLOODQGFRPSHWHQFHVRIOD\SHRSOHDQGH[SHUWVEXWFRPELQHGWKHP LQDQHZDQGIUXLWIXOZD\
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BUCCHI, M. & NERESINI F. (2007). Science and Public 3DUWLFLSDWLRQ ,Q +DFNHWW (- $PVWHUGDPVND 2 /\QFK 0 :DMFPDQ-7KH+DQGERRNRI6FLHQFHDQG7HFKQRORJ\6WXGLHV (448–472). Cambridge: MIT Press.
CALLON, M. (1999). 7KH 5ROH RI /D\ 3HRSOH LQ WKH 3UR GXFWLRQDQG'LVVHPLQDWLRQRI6FLHQWLğF.QRZOHGJH6FLHQFH 7HFKQRORJ\ 6RFLHW\ŋ
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public engagement needs to move upstream. Demos.
WYNNE, B. (1996). 0D\WKH6KHHS6DIHO\*UD]H"$5HĠH[LYH 9LHZRIWKH([SHUW/D\.QRZOHGJH'LYLGH,Q/DVK66]HU]\Q- VNL% :\QQH%5LVN(QYLURQPHQWDQG0RGHUQLW\ŋ London: Sage
