Remarks by David Guston

Remarks by David Guston

Emerging Technologies

My presentation discussed the meaning of "anticipatory governance" for emerging technologies. The Center for Nanotechnology in Society at Arizona State University defines anticipatory governance as "a broad-based capacity extended through society that can act on a variety of inputs to manage knowledge-based technologies while such management is still possible." As a strategic vision, anticipatory governance encourages the development of capacities for: 1) foresight, and particularly scenario development, because all governance requires a disposition toward the future; 2) public engagement, which is both pragmatically helpful and normatively preferable; and 3) integration between science and engineering activities on one hand and social science and humanistic activities on the other, because scientists and engineers know things the rest of us don't, and vice versa.