Description

Every day, reports of new inventions come along. There seems to be an acceleration in inventions as insights from different fields of knowledge are combined. From the latest gadgets to smart innovations that can make our daily lives easier and more enjoyable. Some of these innovations can radically change our lives and living environment. Precisely those profound changes are difficult to capture in advisory reports because they are disruptive: the consequences are hard to predict. Yet everyone senses that we should not just let these innovations come at us. We could at least consider what the consequences might be of, say, the 3D printer, the self-driving car or lab-grown hamburgers. How can policymakers take such drastic changes into account when decisions on the design of the physical living environment are often fixed for a long term? That is why the Rli took the liberty, together with international experts from various disciplines, to take stock of these technological innovations, to see what they could mean for important social issues in the living environment and to form an idea of how people will interact with them. What could these developments mean for a shift in roles in and between the public and private domains? The central question of the foresight study is:

What impact can technological innovations have for the public and private domain in terms of healthy food, efficient mobility and smart buildings?

With the foresight study, the Rli wants to depict possible consequences of technological innovations in the physical domain from various angles and thus feed the social debate. From this, new advisory questions may also possibly arise that can be taken up by the council. The results of this exploration will soon be compiled in an eBook and presented 30 January 2015 at an international closing conference

Speaker(s)

Agnes van Ardenne is a former Dutch politician and diplomat. She was State Secretary for Foreign Affairs in charge of Development Cooperation in the Balkenende II Cabinet and Minister without portfolio for Development Cooperation in the Balkenende III Cabinet. Since 1 July 2011, she has been chairman of the Horticultural Product Board.

Van Ardenne is a member of the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure and chairman of the Committee Exploring Technological Innovations for the Physical Domain. On 30 January, this committee is organising a conference "Connecting the Dots" in Utrecht. More info via the website below

Location

KIVI building

Prinsessegracht 23, 2514 AP The Hague

Organiser

Technology, Society & Economics

Name and contact details for information

Further information via the e-mail address below:

tme@kivi.nl

Site Council for the Environment and Infrastructure