LamprouMemo17

Memo 17 1. Literature Review This study will contribute and build on scholarly literatures on comparative studies in policymaking of different policy cultures, advance the conceptualization of technoscientific standards and their harmonization processes, and contribute to the literatures concerning public participation and expertise in policy making, with a focus on studies of the public sphere. So my research project will start by an extensive literature review on these fields, followed by an extensive review of policy documents. The research will have policy implications for improving the understanding of cultural differences in technology harmonization policy and improving the potential for enhanced public participation in the studies. By reviewing the existing policy documents, I will understand the different frameworks in which different policies develop their values and their influences. My study will not be limited to just formal policy documents but also will include reports from panels and workshop meetings as well as official web pages. 2. Semi constructed Interviews I will conduct 60 interviews with participants in various policy bodies in the EU and US. The interviews will be conducted with a variety of stakeholders/participants: scientists; policy makers; and representatives of NGOs, civil societies, industries, and governments. In the US, interviews will be conducted with key actors in the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI); Working Groups of the Nanoscale Science, Engineering and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee; and American National Standards Institute – Nanotechnology Standards Panel (ANSI-NSP). In the EU, interviews will be conducted with actors that play a key role in the development of the European Commission Nanotechnology Policy and the European Commission DG Health and Consumer Protection / Annual Nanotechnology Safety for Success Dialogue Workshops. 3. Participant Observation I will attend the meetings of ANSI-NSP and the European Workshop. For the needs of this project, I will conduct participant observation in these two places. In the US, at the meetings of the ANSI-NSP, the panel meets more than once a year. In the EU, I will conduct participant observation at the meetings of the Annual Nanotechnology Safety for Success Dialogue Workshops. 4. Analysis I will analyze the material by organizing it according to the three major themes I am exploring. First of all, from the analysis of the documents I will extract conclusions about what drives the policy discussion, taking into account what appears to be different and what appears to be similar in the two political cultures. From the same analysis I will draw connections between the content of the documents and neoliberal ideals. I will use this information to develop my interview questions. Through the interviews, I will draw comparisons between the two political cultures’ procedures as it concerns all three of my research themes. I will identify the debates and the compromises, power issues, and the role of participation. Especially through the participant observation I will identify the role of deliberative institutions in policy making and how public participation is valued and used, paying attention to similarities and differences of the two cultures.