Science, Technology + the Environment

Relationships among science, technology, the environment, and society are intricate and delicate. Oversight for emerging technologies, such as nanotechnology, and deployment of more sustainable technologies, such as renewable energy, are two key areas we address.

Small bites, bigger questions

One problem is that a lot more money is being spent on development than on safety research. Another is that the safety studies that are done tend to be narrowly focused: for example, dosing a zebrafish embryo with high levels of one nanomaterial might not offer a lot of insight about the impact of a consumer product... (more)

While U.S. energy and climate policy flounders, China forges ahead
By Elizabeth Wilson - I stood in awe as a thin strand of metal was sheared from the outside of the 40-foot-high AP-1000 nuclear reactor vessel, landing in a 5-foot-high pile of curly steel shavings... (more)

Research Centers

The Center for Science, Technology, and Public Policy fosters understanding of the role of science and technology in society, particularly relationships to economic growth, health, the environment, education, and national security. The center examines the effects of science and technology on society and on the political and economic relationships among nations. The center's mission is to improve people’s lives by advancing the application of science and technology to solve public problems.

Recent Headlines

Interview: Imagining laws for self-driving cars
Posted 02/04/2012

Design students compete to launch environmental social ventures
Posted 02/04/2012

Frank Douma on telecommuting and flexibility in work
Posted 01/30/2012

Policy Catalyst

Voting Online -- Should We?
Posted 02/22/2012

Everything Science, Technology and Environmental Policy
Posted 02/07/2012

Swackhamer's Testimony to the Energy and Environment Subcommittee
Posted 02/06/2012

Upcoming Science, Technology + Environmental Policy Events

Tuesday

Contested Futures of Governance: Targeted Genetic Modification
March 6, 12 p.m. | Stassen Room (Room 170)

Faculty Experts
Visiting Research Scientist Jeff Bielicki
Senior Fellow Steve Kelley
Associate Professor Jennifer Kuzma
Professor Greg Lindsey
Research Fellow Melisa Pollak
Assistant Professor Kathy Quick
Assistant Professor Carissa Schively-Slotterback
Professor Deborah Swackhamer
Associate Professor Elizabeth Wilson
Visiting Scholar Leili Fatehi
Research Specialist Aliya Kuzhabekova

"Because this is the age of science and technology, it's the age of ideas, it's the age of movement. Anything static is in retreat."

-Hubert Humphrey