About the project

Mysterious diseases, polluted drinking water and mass fish deaths? Or – in contrast – a source of carbon free energy, enabling the EU to meet its Kyoto targets whilst powering our homes and strengthening business?

These are just some of the features of the scenarios developed through Nanologue, a EU funded 6th Framework Programme project looking at the social, ethical and legal implications of nanotechnology.

Based on extensive research and stakeholder consultations, the 21-month project by the Wuppertal Institute in Germany, Forum of the Future in UK, EMPA (Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research), and triple innova of Germany, developed several products to enhance the dialogue about social, ethical and legal aspects for nanotechnology applications, amongst others:

• Three Scenarios of how nanotechnology will have developed by 2015.
  
• The NanoMeter – an internet-based tool assessing societal implications of nanotechnology.

Speaking about the project, Volker Türk, Project coordinator from the Wuppertal Institute, says: “Results from the Nanologue project show that we have a choice in how technology develops – but the choices we make now will have considerable consequences for the future. Nanologue has raised a lot of interest among experts as well as civil society actors. We have helped to prepare the ground to enhance the dialogue on ethical, legal and social aspects of nanotechnologies. The scenarios, tools and practical project results will facilitate to translate the ongoing discussion into action.”

One of the project’s main results is the report “The future of nanotechnology: We need to talk”, consisting in the three scenarios:

• In the first scenario, Disaster Recovery, a lack of regulation results in a major accident. Public concern about nanotechnology is high and technology development is slow and cautious.
  
• In the second scenario, Now We’re Talking, strong regulation and accountability
  systems are in place. The technology has been shaped by societal needs and strong health and safety concerns.
  
• The last scenario, Powering Ahead, entails scientific progress, which occurs faster than expected. Nanotechnology is making a real impact, particularly in energy conversion and storage.

The scenarios should assist people interested in nanotechnology to think about its place in society in a structured way.

“It is important that we learn the lessons from the introduction of GM,” says Hugh Knowles, sustainability advisor at Forum for the Future and one of the authors of the report. “In that instance there was a total lack of forward thinking while the science was being developed and people weren’t consulted on issues that really mattered.”

At the relatively early stage of the development of nanotechnology, there is still the opportunity to put systems in place that maximize the benefits of nano-related products and minimize the risks of manufacturing, using and disposing of them.

“But such systems must be developed through informed dialogue involving the key stakeholders” believes Hans Kastenholz of EMPA.

The second main deliverable of the Nanologue project - the NanoMeter - addresses researchers and product developers. The NanoMeter helps to understand the societal impacts of nano-applications during product research and development in a quick and easy way.

“Offering the most relevant societal implications identified during the Nanologue project the NanoMeter serves as a useful starting point to guide the internal discussion during the development phase of new products and technologies. This is a precondition to animate a debate among stakeholders,” explains Holger Wallbaum of triple innova.

“Both tools – the Nanotech 2015 scenarios and the Nanometer – can be helpful guides to a sustainable and successful future of nanotechnology”, adds Volker Türk.