This two-day conference sponsored by the Northeastern University School of Law brings together experts who are directly involved in the governance of nanotechnologies at the governmental level, in international organizations, in industry and in non-governmental organizations. The participation of representatives from emerging markets and producing countries, such as China, India and Korea will bring a truly global perspective to the proceedings.

Nanotechnology promises to transform the materials of everyday life, leading to smaller and more powerful computers, more durable plastics and fabrics, cheap and effective water purification systems, more efficient solar panels and storage batteries, and medical devices capable of tracking down and killing cancer cells. Policy analysts predict a radical change in the industrial sector. Yet the nanotechnology revolution is not straightforward.  Edited by Director and Principal Investigator Christopher J. Bosso, Governing Uncertainty: Environmental Regulation in the Age of Nanotechnology contains perspectives from economics, history, philosophy, and public policy. This new resource illuminates the challenges inherent in the development of nanotechnology and works toward a reconceptualization of government regulatory approaches.

Order the book from Earthscan Publishing here.

Nanotechnology is a continually developing branch of science, one with political, environmental and ethical implications that are not yet fully understood. Among those taking the lead to clarify those issues is Christopher J. Bosso, associate dean of Northeastern’s School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs and director and principal investigator for the University’s Nanotechnology and Society Research Group. Bosso is also author of a new book “Governing Uncertainty: Environmental Regulation in the Age of Nanotechnology.” Here, he discusses public policy related to nanotechnology and the potential impact of the fast-growing science, for good and ill.

Rob Goble,  Clark University

Thursday, November 5, 2009
Northeastern University

Emerging technologies such as nanotechnology pose a variety of challenges to risk management depending on the nature of the information available. Sometimes there is little or no information about whether a hazard exists, and the issue is coping with the “unknown”; sometimes there is a sudden discovery, a “surprise” that requires interpretation. Or much information may be available, but the information base may be in flux with new aspects acquiring prominence. In all cases there may be strong interests eager to present and interpret particular aspects of the information base.

“Breaking the Barriers to the Commercialization of Nanotechnology”

June 18-19, 2009
Raytheon Amphitheater
Northeastern University
Boston, MA
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As Congress considers continued funding for the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) including support for responsible development for nanotechnology, a Northeastern University report funded by the National Science Foundation and the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies investigates common misconceptions associated with emerging nanotechnologies and emphasizes the importance of attending to ethical issues within ongoing responsible development discourses and efforts.