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INTERROGATING THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE Friday 14 July 2000 The Royal Institution of Great Britain TO REGISTER TELEPHONE: (020) 7670 2986 Many have criticised Prince Charles' recent pronouncement that we should "restore the balance" between traditional "instinctive wisdom" and that of scientific rationalism. Nevertheless, concerns about global warming, mobile phones and genetic engineering, to name just a few examples, suggest that people are increasingly nervous about the harmful consequences of our own actions. The idea of precaution and risk avoidance is at the heart of debate about the future of society. At 'Interrogating the Precautionary Principle', eminent scientists, social scientists and writers will question the premises of the "precautionary principle", justify their views about its applicability to modern society, and consider what it is that society has become so afraid of. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ DATE: Friday 14 July 2000, registration 10.00-11.00am VENUE: The Royal Institution, 21 Albermarle Street, London, W1 TICKETS: £25/£20 (phone the RI box office on (020) 7670 2986) CONVENED BY: Tony Gilland, Professor Susan Greenfield and Dr Helene Guldberg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ SESSIONS: --------- 11.00am-12.30pm FROM GM FOOD TO GLOBAL WARMING: PRECAUTION, SCIENCE AND INNOVATION Speakers: - Lisa Jardine, author, Ingenious Pursuits: building the scientific revolution - Norman Levitt, professor of mathematics, Rutgers University; author, Prometheus Bedeviled: science and the contradictions of contemporary culture - Professor Anthony Trewavas, Institute of Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Edinburgh - Professor Brian Wynne, research director, Centre for the Study of Environmental Change, Lancaster University Chair: Dr Helene Guldberg, former publisher, LM magazine Scientific discovery was once celebrated for enabling greater prosperity, health and knowledge. Now it is criticised for exposing us to new risks with potentially catastrophic consequences. Are the uncertainties involved in modern science of a new order of magnitude or has society lost its nerve? 2.00-3.30pm GOVERNMENT, BIG BUSINESS AND CAMPAIGN GROUPS: WHO DECIDES? Speakers: - Simon Best, CEO, Geron Bio-Med Ltd - Professor David Cope, director, Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology - Dr Douglas Parr, chief scientific adviser, Greenpeace UK - John Vidal, environment editor, The Guardian Chair: Anne Furedi, director of communications, British Pregnancy Advisory Service How can public confidence in science and innovation be rebuilt? In a world of political apathy, where governments are viewed as sleaze-ridden and multinationals as greedy profiteers, who should decide what risks society should take? Does the deference to consumer campaigns and media coverage reflect an abdication of leadership, or an enhancement of the democratic process? 4.00-5.30pm A CULTURE OF CAUTION? Speakers: - Carl Djerassi, professor of chemistry, Stanford University; recipient of the National Medal of Science (for the first synthesis of a steroid oral contraceptive) - Dr Frank Furedi, reader in sociology, University of Kent at Canterbury; author, Culture of Fear - Judy Larkin, specialist in reputation risk management and partner of Regester Larkin - Michael Willmott, co-founder and director, Future Foundation Chair: Professor Susan Greenfield, director, The Royal Institution Risk and safety have become buzzwords for our time. They permeate discussions of everything from child-rearing and personal relationships, to economic development and new technologies. Is there a connection between these fears? ---------------------------------------- This event has been organised in partnership with the Royal Institution as part of THE INSTITUTE OF IDEAS: a Summer 2000 series of debates around the themes of freedom, culture, science, thought and morality: THE INSTITUTE OF IDEAS An Intellectual Map for the 21st Century 16 June to 16 July 2000 For further details on INTERROGATING THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE contact Tony Gilland on 07970 658 979 or via email: [log in to unmask] For more information about THE INSTITUTE OF IDEAS, please call Tiffany Jenkins on (020) 7269 9227 or visit www.InstituteOfIdeas.com ---------------------------------------- Associated INSTITUTE OF IDEAS events: NATURAL HAZARDS Friday 7 July, 10.30am-5.00pm, University College London Produced by: Dr Peter Sammonds, (020) 7679 2422 Speakers include: - Dr Bob Chaplow, NIREX - Piers Corbyn, Weather Action - Lord Julian Hunt FRS, professor of climate modelling, UCL, and former director, Met Office - Bill McGuire, professor of geohazards; director, Benfield Greig Hazard Research Centre; author, Apocalypse; TV's 'Disaster man' - Dr Mark Saunders, Mullard Space Science Laboratory www.ucl.ac.uk/geolsci/research/rip/HAZARDS.htm DETERMINED TO SURVIVE? Wednesday 21 June 2000, 5.30pm, University of Newcastle Produced by: Caspar Hewett, (0191) 222 5680 Speakers: - Christopher Badcock, author, Psychodarwinism: the new synthesis of Darwin and Freud - Dr Helene Guldberg, developmental psychologist - Matt Ridley, author, The Red Queen, The Origins of Virtue, Genome; columnist, Daily Telegraph DEVELOPMENT IN DANGER Thursday 29 June, 10.00am, The Royal Commonwealth Society, London Produced by: Reshmi Parag for WORLDwrite, (020) 8985 5435 Speakers include: - Dr Bernard Dixon, European Federation of Biotechnology - James Heartfield, assistant producer, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes - Kitty Warnock, Panos %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%