Description:

New technologies have complex and extensive impacts on our society, requiring proactive prediction and response. In Korea, the Framework Act on Science and Technology was enacted in 2001, and technology assessment (TA) has been implemented since 2003. In Korea, TA is used to examine the following aspects of new technologies: 1) the impact on the economy, society, culture, ethics, and environment, 2) measures to prevent possible adverse effects and 3) the impact of a technology's ripple effect on various characteristics, such as gender. Korea has seen many trials and errors along the way to establish the current system. This poster describes the evolution of TA in Korea, as well as its achievements and limitations. We will visualise the initial introduction and development process of Korea's TA system, changes in the way target technologies are selected, changes in committees and citizen forums and the process of presenting results and utilizing them for policy. Through this poster, we would like to share the experience of the Korean TA system in establishing itself as an important player in driving social consensus, providing various implications for global TA.

Authors and their affiliations:

Sooyoung CHI (Korea Institute of S&T Evaluation and Planning), Moonjung CHOI (Korea Institute of S&T Evaluation and Planning)

Main Speaker: Sooyoung CHI 

Description:

The Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies (KInIT) is an independent research institute in Bratislava, Slovakia, focusing on excellent research through grants, industry collaborations, and PhD programs. KInIT has partnered in eight European projects, coordinated two projects, collaborated with over 30 industry partners, cooperated with 96 partners across 27 European countries, and supported two ERC grant submissions. The interdisciplinary "Ethics and Human Values in Technology" team explores the intersection of technologies and their societal impact, ensuring alignment with human values and rights. Their core methodologies include ethics-based assessments of AI systems and a Fundamental Rights Impact Assessment methodology. In the EU ALFIE project, KInIT’s role is to analyse ethical principles in AI through two approaches: a top-down analysis of existing ethical frameworks and their implementation in practice, identifying gaps, and proposing improvements, and a bottom-up empirical inquiry into how practitioners incorporate ethical insights to assess framework effectiveness in fostering moral sensitivity of practitioners.

Authors and their affiliations:

Adrián Gavorník (Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies), Juraj Podroužek (Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies), Matúš Mesarčík (Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies), Natália Slosiarová (Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies), Katarína Marčincinová (Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies)

Main Speaker: Adrián Gavorník (Bio)

Additional Speaker: Matúš Mesarčík (Bio)

Description:

With this poster, TC Prague presents its recent technology-assessment-related activities in a national as well as European context. Topics include agricultural technologies, deepfakes, AI and other TA-related subjects. We include expert as well as more participatory-based approaches and methods we regularly use and newly pilot. TC Prague is an academic NGO, established in 1994. It organised the first TA conference within the PACITA project in 2013 and was also part of Advisory Boards and organisational teams of the following TA conferences which respected this special tradition. TC Prague is a member of ETAG, observer of EPTA and one of the globalTA members. Technology Assessment and Foresight are core activities that we focus on in our key mid-term national project on Strategic Intelligence in RRI in Czechia.

Authors and their affiliations:

Lenka Hebáková and Ondřej Pokorný (TC Prague)

Main Speaker: Lenka Hebáková (Bio)

Additional Speaker: Ondřej Pokorný (Bio)

Description:

The technology assessment (TA) system in Korea was established under the Framework Act on Science and Technology, a national legislation enacted in 2001, and has been in operation since 2002. This law mandates the prior analysis of the impacts of science and technology on the economy, society, culture, ethics, and the environment, with the goal of integrating the findings into policymaking processes. Korea’s TA is characterized by its government-led approach, which integrates expert evaluations with public participation. In terms of application, it aligns with systems in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom, where the outcomes serve as valuable inputs for policymakers. Korea's technology assessment exhibits several distinctive features, which we would like to introduce.

Authors and their affiliations:

Uijin Jung (Korea Institute of S&T Evaluation and Planning)

Main Speaker: Uijin Jung

Description:

Sustainability Assessment (SA) methods are applied at different scales, be it global or national, in industry or technology. It uses diverse assessment tools such as life cycle assessment, sustainability indicators or integrated assessment to assess impacts across sustainability dimensions, be they environmental, social, technological, economic or institutional. More and more, SA is used for guiding early technology development stage decisions which led to the development of prospective life cycle assessment (LCA) and sustainability screening tools. The concept of Planetary Boundaries has been increasingly adopted in SA and LCA to understand the interconnectedness of earth system processes and technological developments. Technology Assessment (TA), however, with a goal of improving technological development and adoption in a much wider societal transformations context, is practiced in different forms, e.g. RRI, constructive TA, participatory TA, parliamentary TA, health TA, systems analysis, etc. Understanding the synergies and divergences between methods is crucial. The poster explores diverse practices and recent developments in TA and SA, aiming to bridge gaps and identify opportunities for future learning and co-development.

Authors and their affiliations:

Manish Kumar (Helmholtz Institute Ulm Electrochemical Energy Storage (HIU), Ulm, Germany), Manuel Baumann (Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology - KIT, Karlsruhe, Germany ), Marcel Weil (Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology - KIT, Karlsruhe, Germany)

Main Speaker: Manish Kumar

Description:

The research ethics process faces global challenges, largely due to emerging technologies that ethics reviewers may not fully understand. The internationalisation of research has raised concerns about unethical practices crossing borders, while lack of standardisation complicates consistent application of ethical principles. The Horizon Europe project “irecs” addresses these issues through four actions: examining ethical requirements for new technologies, developing training materials for global ethics communities, implementing ongoing training, and proposing amendments to the ethics process. irecs leverages expertise from global partners, European ethics networks, and a Stakeholder Advisory Board to raise awareness and create interactive, multi-language training programs. This project extends ENERI and the Embassy of Good Science, creating a broad network of ethics practitioners and stakeholders. Additionally, TA aids in harmonizing ethical standards across jurisdictions, ensuring practices evolve with technological advancements. Stakeholder engagement within TA ensures research ethics frameworks remain transparent, adaptable, and trusted globally. The proposed poster highlights irecs’ achievements.

Authors and their affiliations:

Maria Maia (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (KIT-ITAS), Claudia Brändle (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (KIT-ITAS)

Main Speaker: Maria Maia (Bio)

Description:

Technology Assessment (TA) has evolved through an induction-deduction cycle rather than purely theoretical foundations. As ‎TA expands globally, establishing a universal terminology for its paradigms and branches becomes crucial, specifically when TA ‎includes more diversified institutional and axiological settings while going global. Initially designed for social research ‎typologies, the Ontology Matrix of Social Research provides a comprehensive tool to classify TA approaches. Tailored for TA, ‎this matrix defines three ontological paradigms: Zeus, representing objectivist TA, where the societal meaning of technology is ‎determined; Robinhood, reflecting pragmatist TA, which seeks solutions within a single dominant value system; and Solomon, ‎embodying constructivist TA, where multiple societal meanings exist for technology. By assessing the notion of the societal ‎meaning of technology in each paradigm and the roles of social actors in shaping these meanings, the matrix aids in determining ‎the most suitable paradigm for any Global TA project, ensuring adaptability across diverse cultural and ideological contexts.‎

Authors and their affiliations:

Narges Naraghi (Institute of Technology Assessment and System Analysis- ITAS)

Main Speaker: Narges Naraghi

Description:

The Horizon 2020 project PRODIGEES applies Technology Assessment (TA) to examine the interplay between digitalization and sustainable development across Europe, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and South Africa. It investigates economic, environmental, governmental, and societal impacts, integrating interdisciplinary research, Open Science principles, and stakeholder engagement to inform policy and inclusive governance. A core commitment of PRODIGEES is fostering inclusion, particularly gender equity, in research design and implementation. From 2020 to 2025, the project has enabled 74 transnational research exchanges, strengthening capacity-building and knowledge-sharing across 10 partner institutions. These secondments have yielded actionable insights, policy labs, and digital knowledge products aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This poster presents PRODIGEES as a model for leveraging TA to ensure digitalization fosters equitable, sustainable development. It highlights the project’s integrative approach and its role in balancing digital opportunities and challenges while ensuring representation and inclusivity.

Authors and their affiliations:

Benjamin Stewart (German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS))

Main Speaker: Benjamin Stewart (Bio)