Pierre Delvenne

Rethinking Vulnerability Analysis and Governance with Emphasis on a Participatory Approach

This article draws on vulnerability analysis as it emerged as a complement to classical risk analysis, and it aims at exploring its ability for nurturing risk and vulnerability governance actions. An analysis of the literature on vulnerability analysis allows us to formulate a three-fold critique: first, vulnerability analysis has been treated separately in the natural and the technological hazards fields. This separation prevents vulnerability from unleashing the full range of its potential, as it constrains appraisals into artificial categories and thus already closes down the outcomes of the analysis. Second, vulnerability analysis focused on assessment tools that are mainly quantitative, whereas qualitative appraisal is a key to assessing vulnerability in a comprehensive way and to informing policy making. Third, a systematic literature review of case studies reporting on participatory approaches to vulnerability analysis allows us to argue that participation has been important to address the above, but it remains too closed down in its approach and would benefit from embracing a more open, encompassing perspective. Therefore, we suggest rethinking vulnerability analysis as one part of a dynamic process between opening-up and closing-down strategies, in order to support a vulnerability governance framework.

Building on anticipation: Dystopia as empowerment

A dystopia is the depiction of a dark future based on the systematic amplification of current trends and features. It relates to a complex narrative posture that relies on the critical observation of a threatening present that would lead to an apocalyptic future ‘if nothing was done’. Yet, however inescapable this future may be described as, the very existence of such a narrative presupposes that the political community it tries to reach is actually able to do something to thwart it. Oddly enough, a successful dystopia aims at making itself obsolete: once the world it depicts is identified as a possible future, it seems to empower its readers again, restoring a ‘sense of possibilities’ that eventually makes alternative pathways thinkable. The authors of this article propose to add to the range of commonly accepted dystopian novelists such as George Orwell or Aldous Huxley sociologists such as Ulrich Beck or scientists such as Eric Drexler. Through various examples, the article defends the notion that the dystopian posture can be used to characterize both fiction and non-fiction writers: a common ability, based on the same set of inextricably cognitive and normative patterns, to anticipate the future and eventually empower political communities to engage in further action.

Responsible research and innovation as a travesty of technology assessment

ABSTRACTThe relation between technology assessment (TA) and responsible research and innovation (RRI) is a very topical (and controversial) issue, as TA is clearly enveloped in broader science, technology and innovation (STI) processes, such as the EU-wide shift towards RRI. In this short response to van Lente et al.’s [Van Lente, Harro, Tsjalling Swierstra, and Pierre-Benoit Joly. 2017. “Responsible Innovation as a Critique of Technology Assessment.” Journal of Responsible Innovation] essay, I first stress that this contribution has several merits; for example, it points to pervasive challenges for TA communities, such as the issue of including normative concerns when assessing innovations, it opens these challenges to debate, without shying away from engaging TA communities. However, I disagree with the authors’ claim that RRI would be ‘a next step of TA’ or even a ‘form of TA’. In my essay, I explain why I believe RRI is different from TA and why, rather than a critique of TA, RRI could instead lead to...

As above, so below? Narrative Salience and Side Effects of National Innovation Systems

ABSTRACT This article furthers previous attempts at integrating narratology in policy analysis. Embracing an open-ended definition of narrative, it stresses the importance of maintaining distinct narrative levels and, more generally, of taking into account the pragmatic dimension of narration as an activity, including the often-implicit role and focalization of the policy analyst. Developing a conceptual analogy between storytelling and the exercise of power, it argues for a critical use of practical imagination in ‘cold’ situations of ‘narrative salience’, characterized by the absence of controversy or uncertainty, an uneven distribution of the power of scenarization. These propositions for a ‘revisited’ approach to policy narratives, equidistant from the positivist and post-positivist dichotomy, are tested on the case of ‘narrative salience’ where a particular storyline, national innovation systems, is so dominant that there appears to be no ‘counter-story’.

Dancing without listening to the music: learning from some failures of the ‘national innovation systems’ in Latin America

In this chapter, the authors engage with the widespread and influential approach of national innovation systems (NISs). They discuss its adequacy to non-OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries, especially in Latin America, where it is abundantly implemented and tends to be reified, which leads to a situation where relevant contextual elements tend to be ignored. Although the NISs approach is meant to address the most pressing needs of the economies it applies to, namely solving poverty, reducing social inequalities, increasing productivity and creating jobs, the authors argue that it would benefit from developing a more encompassing scope, allowing integration of greater diversity and complexity. By retracing the history of regimes of science, technology and innovation (STI) in Latin America, the authors explore the problems faced by actors willing to use NISs more reflexively. They hereby discuss the effectiveness of STI policies in non-OECD countries. Finally, they formulate a research agenda with three suggestions for further engaging NISs both conceptually and practically. Using such analytical perspectives, they argue, might benefit scholarly work about NISs and could also allow for a better articulation with STI regimes in Southern countries.

Embedded Promissory Futures: The Rise of Networked Agribusiness in Argentina’s Bioeconomy

The chapter offers a much-needed sociotechnical analysis of the bioeconomy as a concept and a political project in Argentina. Focusing on the case study of genetically modified (GM) soy, Delvenne shows that the bioeconomy is at the center of intense struggles to re-think agriculture as-we-knew-it, and to re-name it as “agro-industry ”. The chapter explores these developments as evidence of an attempt to reject the idea of agriculture as the reactionary stronghold of a backward bourgeoisie and instead embrace agriculture as generative of an industrial avant-garde that promises political-economic transcendence. The chapter closes with an investigation of new forms of ‘networked agribusiness ’ that constitute the habitat of today’s bioeconomy in Argentina .

The Future of Ageing — Stakeholder Involvement on the Future of Care

Barland et al. describe an example project showcasing the strengths of technology assessment methodology in structuring stakeholder dialogues in a cross-European context. The authors provide an in-depth account of the method design choices made and their underlying rationale. Beyond the buzzword, well-structured and transparent stakeholder dialogue can help to balance difficult issues of policy priority — in this case by balancing the contributions of technological innovation against social reorganization as a means of securing sustainable future health-care service for senior citizens. The article shows the added value of multi-site dialogues based in national debates but linked to the European policy development process.

Taming uncertainty: towards a new governance approach for nuclear waste management in Belgium

We focus on the new governance practices in Belgian nuclear waste management (NWM) from its ‘participatory turn’ in the late 1990s. Rather than praising (or rejecting) participation versus expert analysis, we make use of a theoretical and analytical framework in which the relevant dynamics for the analysis are ‘opening up’ and ‘closing down’ technological appraisals and commitments. Even though NWM agencies often plead for an integrative approach between expert analysis and stakeholder participation, in practice both exercises are often kept separate. We address this separation and its consequences and we find that societal concerns remain subsumed in the technical options that have long been favoured by the Belgian agency. This article encourages scholars, waste managers, and decision-makers to scrutinise the moments and situations in which opening up would be desirable, and when, by contrast, it would be better to close down options in NWM.

O princípio da precaução como uma ferramenta estratégica para redesenhar a (sub)política: compreensão e perspectivas da ciência política de língua Francesa

O principio da precaucao esta inserido em um contexto decisional em evolucao, marcado por uma incerteza multidimensional com relacao as consequencias ambientais, economicas, sociais, eticas e politicas das inovacoes tecnologicas. Na ciencia politica de lingua francesa, o principio funciona como uma ferramenta estrategica, uma resposta politica ao surgimento de um novo fluxo de incerteza social, voltada principalmente para as insegurancas do mundo cientifico. Neste trabalho, afirmamos que o principio da precaucao redefine a forma de gerir a incerteza cientifica, em uma sociedade caracterizada pela indefinicao das fronteiras entre atores politicos e subpoliticos. Em sua aplicacao, ha uma linha de ruptura que reduz a margem de manobra decisoria de determinadas entidades subpoliticas, enquanto incentiva outras a agirem. Contudo, enfatizamos que, em um mundo cada vez mais globalizado e interligado, os efeitos da aplicacao do principio da precaucao sao temporarios e locais. Ainda assim, o principio pode contribuir para os importantes debates a serem desenvolvidos em espacos institucionais, para uma acao reflexiva antecipatoria e de apoio a decisao.

Food Chain Security and Vulnerability

In our contemporary societies, the food chain could be defined as a macro-technical system, which depends on a wide variety of actors and risks analysis methods. In this contribution, risks related to the food chain are defined in terms of “modern risks” (Beck 1992). The whole national economic sector of food production/distribution is vulnerable to a local accident, which can affect the functioning of food chain, the export programs and even the political system. Such a complex socio-technical environment is undoubtedly vulnerable to intentional act such as terrorism.