Science's new social contract with society

Gibbons, Michael

doi:10.1038/35011576

Cited by 662 publications

(427 citation statements)

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“…In order to respond to those challenges, scientists recommend exploring new pathways beyond the growth-based economic model driving our societies, and call for planetary stewardship and for a societal transition towards more responsible ways of relating to people and planet, and of operating, researching, and innovating (Brito and Stafford-Smith 2012;Steffen et al 2011;the Royal Society 2012). Scientists emphasize, also, the need for a new contract between science and society which encourages greater connectivity between the academic community and the rest of society (e.g., Brito and Stafford-Smith 2012;Gibbons 1999). Inevitably, higher education (HE) needs to be closely attuned to this changing time, given its pivotal role in assisting students to navigate through the uncertain and "supercomplex" world we live in (Barnett 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

(Re-)designing higher education curricula in times of systemic dysfunction: a responsible research and innovation perspective

Tassone

O’Mahony

McKenna³

et al. 2017

High Educ

101

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There is an urgent need to address the grand sustainability challenges of our time, and to explore new and more responsible ways of operating, researching, and innovating that enable society to respond to these challenges. The emergent Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) policy agenda can act as a catalyst towards the development of new and more responsible research and innovation efforts. Inevitably, higher education needs to be closely attuned to this need and agenda, by preparing students to engage in RRI efforts. This paper makes a first step towards guiding the embedding of RRI within higher education. It does so by bringing together academic knowledge with phronesis or practical knowledge about what should be done in an ethical, political, and practical sense. It draws on a literature review and on the reflective practices of partners in the European Commission funded project EnRRICH (Enhancing Responsible Research and Innovation through Curricula in Higher Education), as well as on interviews and case studies gathered as part of the project. The paper suggests elements, especially design principles and a competence framework, for (re)designing curricula and pedagogies to equip higher education students to be and to become responsible actors, researchers, and innovators in a complex world, and to address grand sustainability challenges. In addition, this paper proposes that contemporary higher education teaching and learning policies and strategies, especially those promoting neoliberal agendas and marketized practices, need to adopt a more responsible and responsive ethos to foster the renewal of higher education in times of systemic dysfunction.High Educ

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

(Re-)designing higher education curricula in times of systemic dysfunction: a responsible research and innovation perspective

Tassone

O’Mahony

McKenna³

et al. 2017

High Educ

101

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“…In the field of sustainability science, a consensus has emerged that academia needs to be reoriented in order to achieve a better balance between disciplinary and interdisciplinary research, and to actively involve stakeholders and decision makers at local to global levels in a transdisciplinary process (Gibbons 1999;McMichael et al 2003;Martens et al 2010;Reid et al 2010a, b). The academic system is still fundamentally organized according to disciplines.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Science with Society in the Anthropocene

Seidl

Brand

Stauffacher

et al. 2013

AMBIO

104

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Interdisciplinary scientific knowledge is necessary but not sufficient when it comes to addressing sustainable transformations, as science increasingly has to deal with normative and value-related issues. A systems perspective on coupled human-environmental systems (HES) helps to address the inherent complexities. Additionally, a thorough interaction between science and society (i.e., transdisciplinarity = TD) is necessary, as sustainable transitions are sometimes contested and can cause conflicts. In order to navigate complexities regarding the delicate interaction of scientific research with societal decisions these processes must proceed in a structured and functional way. We thus propose HES-based TD processes to provide a basis for reorganizing science in coming decades.

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“…Now knowledge parks were conceived with the aim of helping restore an authority to science, specifically to genetics. One hope is to bring about a new robustness (Gibbons 1999) by building into the very concept of knowledge a mix of scientific and non-scientific expertise. Scientific information will combine with other kinds of information to produce validated knowledge.…”

Section: E T H N O G R a P H I C S P E C I Fi C Smentioning

confidence: 99%

Experiments in interdisciplinarity1

Strathern¹

2007

Social Anthropology

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Science's new social contract with society

Cited by 662 publications

References 1 publication

(Re-)designing higher education curricula in times of systemic dysfunction: a responsible research and innovation perspective

(Re-)designing higher education curricula in times of systemic dysfunction: a responsible research and innovation perspective

Science with Society in the Anthropocene

Experiments in interdisciplinarity1

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