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If you need more information or research on issues at the intersection of science and technology with public policy, we can organize and conduct research projects with scientists in other colleges of the University of Minnesota that can blend cutting edge science and technology with policy savvy.

If you need to engage the public on science or technology issues, we can deliver our knowledge, experience and alliances with Humphrey Institute experts on sophisticated methods of public involvement and decision making.

The Center for Science, Technology & Public Policy's mission is to improve people’s lives by advancing the application of science and technology to solve public problems. 

CSTPP explores the increasingly important role that science and technology plays in our society and examines its implications for public policy at the international, national and state levels.

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Annual Report 2008-2009

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Lester Brown Asks: How Will We Eat?

Oil: A Love Story

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News

Prof. Jennifer Kuzma was recently part of a team awarded a $3.3 million National Science Foundation grant "Precise Engineering of Plant Genomes using Zinc Finger Nucleases". On this project, Prof. Kuzma will serve as co-PI and take the lead on the societal implications component of the research, investigating stakeholder, expert, and public perceptions of a novel technology for modifying plant genomes and evaluating oversight models for it. She and a student will work with PI Dan Voytas from Plant Biology at the U of MN and co-PIs Jae Joung (Mass. General Hospital), Kan Wang (Iowa State) and Drena Dobbs (Iowa State).

Prof. Kuzma was invited to participate in a small planning workshop of the National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council for the "Impact of Nanoscale Technologies on Agriculture and Food Systems: A Scoping Workshop for Assessment of Technological and Societal Implications" on August 21-22, 2009 in Washington DC. The National Academy of Sciences is the premier national organization for addressing critical science and technology issues and giving advice to the federal government and the public. The organization is planning more activity in one area of Prof. Kuzma's research, agrifood nanotechnology.

Deborah Swackhamer, co-director of the university's Water Resources Center, professor in the School of Public Health and Charles M. Denny Jr. Chair in Science, Technology and Public Policy at the Humphrey Institute, has been re-appointed by Governor Pawlenty to the Clean Water Council. Swackhamer is one of nine recent appointments to the 23 member council created by the legislature to provide advice on how to administer and implement the Clean Water Legacy Act, including making recommendations to the Governor on the appropriation of funds in the Clean Water Legacy Account.

Deborah Swackhamer has been named Charles M. Denny Chair. Read more

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