Researchers from the USA, Canada, Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia and even Oceania participate on-site as well as remotely. "Although technology assessment originated in the Western world, came from the USA and established itself in Europe, it has now become a global trend. The great interest in this conference shows the demand for science-based policy advice on technology issues from different perspectives and in different cultures and political systems", says ITA director, Michael Nentwich, who is organising the event together with his local team and an international advisory board.

Creating impact, but how?

How is technology assessment, that is, science-based policy advice on issues related to emerging technologies, practiced worldwide? How are international organisations involved, and what conditions ensure that TA succeeds in various geopolitical contexts as well as on a global scale? Insights on these and other topics will be provided by Julia Hahn (Germany), co-founder of the globalTA network, science-diplomat Krishna Ravi Srinivas (India), Karen Howard (USA), director of the US parliamentary TA institution, Mahlet Teshome (Ethiopia), who works at the African Union, and Peta Ashworth from Curtin University (Australia), who has been observing the international TA scene for a long time. Another highlight will be a keynote given by the Chilean expert on parliamentary TA, Raimundo Roberts, who will shed light on TA from the perspective of Latin America. Other interesting formats include, for example, a workshop on effective communication or a presentation on the development of global strategies for problems such as food shortages or pandemics.

Challenges of Digitisation

Numerous lectures address structures, standards and regulations needed to prevent negative effects of digitalisation, particularly in the context of global impact chains and regional value systems. Maria Maia and Claudia Brädle (Portugal/Germany) have organised a session on ethics within European research on artificial intelligence in health and healthcare, but also genome editing and biobanking, that is the collection of biological materials. Astrid Mager, a long-standing TA expert at ITA and co-founder of the Commission ‘Democracy in Digital Societies’ (DEMGES) at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, adds insights on reconciling regional value systems and universal standards in a global context. Christoph Henrich (Fiji) reports on climate technologies in the Pacific, and Marko Monteiro (Brazil) looks at system resilience using the example of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Let’s discuss!

Sessions on hypes and their impact on technology development and TA and quantum technologies also promise to be exciting. An interactive panel explores which instituional structures are necessary for a successful assessment. The event will conclude with a round table discussion with experts from international organisations, chaired by Douglas Robinson (OECD).

"We are very pleased that we have succeeded in bringing TA experts from around the world to Vienna for this exciting event. It will always be important for a democratic societies to assure that socio-technical innovation benefits people and the environment. But we still have a lot to learn about how to fully address its global dimensions. This is why face-to-face interaction on an international level is so important", says Karen Kastenhofer, co-organiser of the conference and deputy director of the ITA.

The ITA has examined risks and opportunities of generative AI on behalf of the Austrian Parliament. The final report is now available on the parliament's website, the Executive Summary is also available in English. ‘Our goal was to examine how generative AI can be used by democratic systems. However, this also requires an awareness that AI cybercrime and deepfakes pose a serious threat to democracy,’ emphasises ITA Director Michael Nentwich.

Seizing the right opportunities

The final report, which is now available, covers topics such as digital sovereignty, hybrid threats and AI cybercrime, as well as possible options for dealing with AI. The authors propose a variety of accompanying measures to mitigate risks and make the new technology compatible with democracy.

Specifically, they propose collecting examples of the successful use of generative AI in politics and making them available on a kind of ‘democracy platform’. This platform could also play an important role in the context of initiatives on AI literacy. ‘Above all, it is important to take people along,’ says Michael Nentwich. ‘We as a society should come to an understanding about how democratic debates will be conducted in the future and what role AI applications should play in them.’ Fact-checking and labelling of AI content are urgently needed to minimise misinformation. Other measures proposed include the establishment of a parliamentary commission of inquiry on ‘Democracy and AI’, the development of a code of conduct for AI in politics, and nationwide citizens' forums on fundamental issues of democracy.

Potential for damage significant

Generative AI can contribute to the mass dissemination of disinformation. Microtargeting thus not only offers opportunities but also poses dangers for democratic systems, because it can be used to secrently influence electoral decisions. To avoid this, the study authors propose a general ban on political microtargeting of voters using AI. Environmental damage and consequences for the climate, due to the extremely high consumption of water, energy and land, as well as unethical working conditions in the training and production of AI, are also major problems.

New challenges for Austrian politics

The ITA researchers conclude that parliament, as a central actor in democratic politics, must address these controversial issues. ‘To ensure the best possible functioning of the political system in Austria and the EU, measures must be discussed on a broad basis,’ both inside and outside parliament’, says Nentwich. The worldwide interconnectedness of tech companies, most of which are based outside Europe, and the relative slowness of regulation compared to technological development make this a crucial challenge that can only be overcome through joint European cooperation.

However, extraction and supply also cause environmental damage and problems in the countries of origin. On behalf of the European Parliamentary Research Service, ITA researcher Steffen Bettin has analysed how research and innovation can help make the acquisition of critical raw materials more sustainable and fairer.

Read more – click here for the ITA dossier ‘Innovation for critical raw materials’

To what extent do social media endanger democracy today? How well are they suited for disseminating information? ITA security expert Stefan Strauß was quoted many times as co-author of an ÖAW statement on the topic. Other ITA highlights included numerous media appearances of sociologist Alexander Bogner on ‘policy advice in times of crisis’, an ITA team participating in the World Food Day 2024, and Astrid Mager's contribution to an international study on the global impact of digitisation.

Are social media a danger to democracy?
On 26 February, National Council President Wolfgang Sobotka and ÖAW President Heinz Fassmann presented a much-publicised statement on this issue at the Austrian Parliament. As part of the panel of authors, ITA security expert Stefan Strauß warned against manipulation, for example in political elections or consumer decisions. Social media have the potential to polarise and emotionalise, often with an intent to generate profit. For Strauß, regulation and media literacy are crucial in order to adequately deal with this phenomenon.

Transparency as the key to electoral success
Sociologist Alexander Bogner has established himself as an important voice on effective political crisis management in German-speaking countries and beyond. The principal author of a pandemic review study commissioned by the Austrian government emphasised that ‘it must be transparent who advises politicians and how these experts get appointed.’ Despite the efforts of policymakers to manage the crisis, key questions about policy advice remain unanswered. According to Bogner, the public has a right to be informed about how and by whom evidence is shaped, who asks the questions, and what range of answers is actually taken into account.

Focus on the global impact digitisation
Astrid Mager, a science and technology studies scholar at ITA, is an expert on automation bias and the social impact of digitisation. As part of an international expert panel, she co-authored a study on the perception and critical discussion of digitisation in different countries around the globe. For Mager, cultural and socio-political differences are key factors: even within the EU, the struggle for viable data protection guidelines has sparked heated discussions that have revealed different views and political currents in different countries. Therefore, in order to make ethical decisions, technology governance approaches must consider the social, cultural and political contexts of regulatory measures, according to the study authors.

ITA scientists at World Food Day
On 16 October, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) celebrated Global World Food Day – a day of action around the topic of nutrition and food production. This year's motto was: ‘The right to food for a better life and a better future’. A team of ITA scientists, led by Ulrike Bechtold and Mahshid Sotoudeh, joined in the activities: the ITA is currently working on this urgent social challenge in the EU project ‘ToNoWaste’. The project's mission is to encourage stakeholders in European food systems to make better choices for more sustainable production and consumption patterns. ‘The production of food and all the steps that go along with food production play a pivotal role. For example, the ecological footprint of food is eventually also relevant for planetary and human health,’ says Bechtold.

Submit your entry now! Click here for the Call for Papers

‘TA needs to be viewed from a global point of view – technology is not limited to national territories in its development, application and regulation. Furthermore, relevant and valuable expertise on the social impact of new technologies is available on all continents. We are therefore very pleased that Vienna will be hosting this international and transcontinental exchange for the first time,’ emphasises Karen Kastenhofer, Deputy Director of the ITA. ‘It will also be an opportunity to look at our European approaches from a different angle.’

GlobalTA is a network of non-profit organisations from around the world that work together in the field of technology assessment and policy advice. Since its beginnings in 2019, the aim is to help shape responsible and sustainable innovation in order to meet the major global challenges of our time.

Information about the event

TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT GOES GLOBAL
International Conference, hosted by the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) at the Austrian Academy of Sciences in cooperation with the globalTA network

Vienna/Austria & hybrid on June 2-4, 2025

Call for Papers

GlobalTA network

Rafaela Cavalcanti de Alcantara, you spent two months in Mexico during the EU PRODIGEES project researching the impact of digitization on urban planning and human rights. What where the experiences that will stay with you the most?

Cavalcanti de Alcantara: As a Latin American researcher in diaspora   , it is meaningful when I have the opportunity for an exchange with colleagues about issues relevant for Latin America.  Being hosted by Instituto Mora fostered significant encounters with researchers and students who also have been elaborating on themes like territorialities, social struggles, and new technologies. Moreover, my exchange with the Center for Gender Researches and Studies of the National Autonomous University of Mexico was a highlight of my stay. I attended three workshops they offered, visited their Fanzine library, and had relevant talks with their staff and researchers connected to the centre. It was exceptional to get to know their transdisciplinarity as well as experience generosity as an academic practice both at Instituto Mora and CIEG.

What led you to do research about “body-territory”? Can you explain the concept?

Cavalcanti de Alcantara: The concept of body-territory itself comes originally from Latin America.  It raises awareness about how the exploitation of common goods, such as indigenous, urban or rural land, involves the violation of the body of each person as well as the collective body. Coming from Brazil and being currently based in Europe makes me think about a colonialist past and present, so questions of territory, of what land who is entitled to use and why, are always crucial. Also, I think about the body as the first place we occupy in the world. What those bodies represent affects the access to, or exclusion from, specific spaces and rights.

This research trip gave me an opportunity to look at the increasing use of databases to manage cities. I also got to further explore the body-territory concept. By raising awareness about the situation   of each body in the world, it challenges the liberal idea of the “individual” as being a cis-white male. I believe this is important because “abstract” or “imagined” urban citizen models consider rights somehow “taken for granted.” However, when thinking about people living in the cities, we should consider conditions in the real world.

You are focusing on the digitization of cities in your research. How is that related to technology assessment?

Cavalcanti de Alcantara: Digitization or datafication of cities may refer to a diversity of initiatives deployed in urban spaces, often including new technologies involving big data. Bearing in mind those contexts, for technology assessment we should consider that there is no such thing as a neutral technological tool or neutral knowledge production. Ideas, priorities, budget allocation, urban policies, and data analysis come from situated perspectives and views about the world. Therefore, assuming the lack of neutrality in technology is an essential initial step to avoid thinking about “one size fits all” urban technological tools.
Our bodies, as the first place we occupy in the world, inform the possibilities of living as a first scale of territoriality, so we all have a position from which we see and interact with the world. Recognizing it is a crucial step to realise the need to discuss city policies with the diversity of people, groups, social movements, and collectives that make a city.

In your experience, how do governments use big data to make decisions about individual rights? How does this affect people and human rights?

Cavalcanti de Alcantara: I have some years of experience in human rights advocacy in South America, where I have closely followed debates about mass biometric surveillance. The untargeted use of facial recognition on streets and other spaces accessed by the public is a significant issue concerning not only privacy but also the presumption of innocence and other rights like freedom of expression and association. When I was involved in those discussions, I learnt that new urban technologies are never deployed in a “vacuum.” If a technology tool is applied within a specific space, we have to take into consideration that it is enacting a territory with meanings, needs, inequalities, and differences. This encompasses, of course, considering the diversity of bodies that inhabit those places.  

With my work, I want to raise awareness about different ways to use big data in the cities, which also encompasses thinking about whether performing some of those uses is really necessary. Challenging narratives that frame big data deployments as objective or neutral is crucial.

Bio

Rafaela Cavalcanti de Alcantara has been a researcher at ITA since January 2023. She is a PhD candidate in Science and Technology Studies, holds a Master’s Degree in Human Rights and is also a registered lawyer in Brazil. In addition to her research experience, she served civil society organizations for around six years, involved in legal empowerment and Human Rights advocacy efforts . At ITA, she dedicates herself to understanding the connections between welfare, data analysis, and the use of algorithms in the public sector – especially regarding urban management and social security. Her stay in Mexico was funded by the EU project PRODIGEES.  

The “CAIL-framework” developed in the project is used to show which factors and basic skills – in particular human interpretative capacity and coping capacity – are crucial when dealing with AI systems in order to be able to meet the challenges constructively.

The benefits of AI ‘are overestimated’

Stefan Strauß, project manager and AI expert at the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) of the ÖAW, says: ‘Among other things, the analysis shows that AI can be particularly useful for repetitive, formalized tasks. However, many questions remain unanswered: The benefits of AI are sometimes overestimated and there is a lack of knowledge about the real benefits and limitations of the technologies. There is a gap between using AI as an expert system and using it simply as an add-on. The more abstract the application, the greater the possibility of practical problems.”

According to author Stefan Strauß, there is a great deal of potential in areas with a high level of expertise, such as diagnostic imaging in medicine. In all areas, specialist knowledge, clear purposes and an awareness of the problems associated with the special features of AI-based automation (such as dynamics, complexity and volatility) are crucial factors for constructive use. The assumption that AI will reduce the workload, on the other hand, is difficult to sustain.

Human control is still urgently needed

The high expectations of added value are offset by an underestimated additional workload associated with the use of AI – particularly in terms of quality assurance. Although AI systems can produce results quickly, additional measures are needed to ensure that these results are correct and reliable. ‘Interpretation and verification remain an essential human task, and will become even more important in the future. That is why Critical AI Literacy is becoming a part of modern knowledge work,’ emphasises Strauß.

The report contains contributions reflecting the experiences of 19 countries, with the ITA being Austria's EPTA member.

Austria reports on current developments in government and administration

Governments are increasingly adapting AI models developed by companies such as Meta, Google and Microsoft to their own needs. At present, the technical possibilities for doing so are still limited. Ministries and administrative bodies are therefore receiving customised versions of chatbots like ChatGPT.

For example, the ITA reports on the Austrian Ministry of Education, Science and Research, which has signed a contract with Microsoft for the use of its cloud computing platform Azure with customised access to OpenAI's ChatGPT application. The intention is even to use it to create questions used in mathematics school leaving exams. The study ‘Generative AI and Democracy’, which the Austrian Parliament has commissioned from the ITA and which is still ongoing, is also mentioned.

Partial translation available in German

As a special service for the German-speaking technology assessment community, the public and members of parliament, TAB, the technology assessment unit at the German parliament, is providing both the German country report and the summary for political decision-makers in German translation.

That is why we communicate our scientific results via independent media, whose primary goal is to report based on facts and thus promote informed opinions and objective discourse. The Austrian media law emphasizes those principles. We also see it as our duty to actively counter hate speech, fake news and a lack of transparency as anti-democratic phenomena.

Since the change in ownership in 2022, the short message service X (formerly Twitter) has undergone a continuous change towards one-sided political opinion-forming and no longer fulfils the requirements of a neutral, independent platform that tries to prevent hateful, discriminatory and disinformative content. For this reason, we no longer use X as a news channel until further notice.

Follow the ITA on our alternative social media channels

We will continue to use our channels on  Bluesky, LinkedIn, Facebook and Mastodon to disseminate our research results and announce events. We hope that you, our loyal and highly valued X followers, will also follow us there and look forward to continuing an exciting scientific discourse on new technologies and their impact on society!

These important questions havel been discussed at the conference of the Technology Assessment Network, which includes researchers and institutions from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The network is celebrating its 20th anniversary with this 11th edition of the NTA conferences.

ITA showed strong presence

At the occasion of this anniversary, the ITA contributes on various levels: Karen Kastenhofer, who is also a member of the conference's scientific advisory board, moderated a panel on the advisory needs of politics in times of polycrises. In her lecture, she analysed quality standards of scientific policy advice. Alexander Bogner moderated a panel on the topic of quality assurance in policy-advising technology assessment, in which ITA director Michael Nentwich also participated, alongside the heads of ITAS and TAB. Bogner held a lecture on quality assurance in policy advice.

Michael Nentwich and colleagues from Germany also organised a workshop on the use of generative AI in policy advice. Furthermore, Michael Ornetzeder from ITA talked about his experiences at the international level as a member of the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC). Rafaela Cavalcanti de Alcântara, a doctoral student at ITA, presented results from the ongoing AutoWelf and Prodigees projects, André Gazsó reported on 17 years of NanoTrust and Mahshid Sotoudeh, Saskia Favreuille and Ulrike Bechtold talked about their policy advice experiences in the area of food redistribution. Finally, representatives of ITA moderated a total of six sessions and keynotes.

The meeting was organised by the Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS) of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in cooperation with the ITA, the Fraunhofer ISI, the IQIB in Bad Neuenahr and TA-Swiss.

Submit your entry now! Click here for the Call for Papers

‘TA needs to be viewed from a global point of view – technology is not limited to national territories in its development, application and regulation. Furthermore, relevant and valuable expertise on the social impact of new technologies is available on all continents. We are therefore very pleased that Vienna will be hosting this international and transcontinental exchange for the first time,’ emphasises Karen Kastenhofer, Deputy Director of the ITA. ‘It will also be an opportunity to look at our European approaches from a different angle.’

GlobalTA is a network of non-profit organisations from around the world that work together in the field of technology assessment and policy advice. Since its beginnings in 2019, the aim is to help shape responsible and sustainable innovation in order to meet the major global challenges of our time.

Information about the event

TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT GOES GLOBAL
International Conference, hosted by the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) at the Austrian Academy of Sciences in cooperation with the globalTA network

Vienna/Austria & hybrid on June 2-4, 2025

Call for Papers

GlobalTA network

The mission of the EU ToNoWaste project is to support stakeholders in European food systems in making better choices for more sustainable production and consumption patterns. The new ITA dossier ‘Saving food together’ provides previous findings from the project. Click here to download (PDF, 2 pages)

Cordial invitation to the ToNoWaste Winter School!

From 24-26 February there will be the opportunity to work on the topic: together we will look for perspectives and insights to stop food waste. The Winter School will take place in Valencia, Spain. Click here for the Save-the-Date.

ITA project ToNoWaste

She places particular emphasis on the European context, where there has long been a debate about how to contain and regulate large tech companies like Google and their business practices, but also how alternative search engines can thrive in the shadow of large, commercial players.

'Only by understanding how search engines are shaped and negotiated in different cultural and socio-political contexts can we think about renegotiating search engines in the future – especially in Europe, where values such as data protection, independence and digital sovereignty are held high in EU policy,’ emphasises Mager, who presented her habilitation on 30 September. The science and technology researcher works at the interface between the internet and society and was elected to the Young Academy of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in 2018.

Links

Astrid Mager – CV and publications

Young Academy of the Austrian Academy of Sciences

Kastenhofer, deputy head of the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, addresses these questions. On 19 September, she presented her internationally acclaimed work on ‘techno-epistemic cultures’ and received the positive decision of the habilitation committee.

Kastenhofer has always been interested in the question of how different epistemic cultures are reflected in the quality, expectations and applications regarding scientific output. Her work at the ITA focuses on the reconstruction of technoepistemic cultures and on evidence-informed governance models  for controversial technologies such as genetic engineering.

Links

Bio und Publications Karen Kastenhofer

‘Together, we were able to talk in depth and exchange views on different aspects of project work. This opportunity, to take time to look at something from different angles, was very important. Sometimes important aspects and insights can only be reached via detours - a real discussion simply takes time,’ says Bechtold.

‘What particularly impressed me was the ITA's diverse portfolio of work,’ says Mutebi. ‘I look forward to further strengthening the link between the UK and the EU in the area of technology assessment and science policy.’

A new study, in which the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences participated, was presented to the European Parliament's Committee on Science and Technology in Strasbourg on July 22. It was only in May that the EU passed its own Critical Raw Materials Act in order to prevent possible supply or mining bottlenecks. The study for the European Parliament shows how research and innovation can help solve problems relating to the supply of critical raw materials.

Risks in extraction, processing and supply

According to Steffen Bettin and Saskia Favreuille from the ITA, the problems are manifold: "Care must be taken to ensure that extraction is sustainable, and this requires less energy consumption. We also need more research into the interactions between raw material extraction and the environment. Attention must be paid to energy efficiency not only during extraction, but also when refining the materials," emphasizes Steffen Bettin. At present, the majority of refining is carried out in countries such as China for cost reasons. "We should actually consider mining raw materials in Europe again, because it is very problematic to outsource this to areas that have lower safety, environmental or social standards," says Bettin.

For Saskia Favreuille, research as a whole is lagging behind: "There are a lot of raw materials that we classify as critical, but only a few of them are sufficiently investigated." When reviewing past EU projects, she discovered that a number of raw materials on the list of those to be classified as critical have not yet been researched or have hardly been researched at all: "Cobalt and lithium, which is very much in vogue at the moment due to e-mobility, are being discussed a lot, but other raw materials are just as urgently needed," emphasizes Favreuille.

More research urgently needed

The authors of the study conclude that more international cooperation is needed in order to keep the promise of sustainability. "Research and innovation must play a greater role in new cooperation agreements so that they don't just remain declarations of intent," Bettin and Favreuille agree. "Additional knowledge and technical innovations are definitely needed to prevent supply problems. More attention also needs to be paid to the environmental and social impact."

However, through abrasion technical nanomaterials can be released during the insertion and use of these implants. Although no negative interactions in the human body are known to date, possible health risks must be taken into account and investigated in more detail for authorisation procedures for innovative materials.

The current NanoTrust dossier on this topic provides an overview of the material properties of ceramic dental implants in comparison with conventional implants made of titanium and explains the potential opportunities and risks associated with the use of this material in dental implantology.

Link
NanoTrust Dossier "Ceramic dental implants - Structure, properties, and potential risks of innovative materials"
Authors: Andreas Breitwieser, Anna Pavlicek, Florian Part, Marius Koppler, Mike Zäuner, Eva-Kathrin Ehmoser, André Gazsó

Dr. Kastenhofer, how does one become a technology assessor at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, even though there is no training for it?

Karen Kastenhofer: I can only try to answer, but I think it is by never stopping to question things and seeing science as something that can and should be reflected upon. A certain interest in social problems and democratic policy issues is probably also part of it.

You have been at the ITA since 2007, how did you find your way around this mix of different disciplines and world views at the beginning?

Kastenhofer: I had so many questions (laughs). But I felt that I was in the right place and that here, technology research was a possible professional choice. Of course, we all had to find ways of working together and it was not always easy. My self-awareness as a technology assessment specialist also had to develop. I knew individual scientist from the ITA, but I still had to get to know the character of the institute. Suddenly, I was working under a new label. But what exactly was technology assessment (TA)? It was like jumping in at the deep end!

TA also deals with citizens' opinions on technology and actively provides policy advice. How do you make sure the advice is authentic?

Kastenhofer: Dealing with technology is so complex, we have to question so many things: How is technology made and what does technology do to us? How does technology affect our private spaces, how should politics deal with it? I see TA as having a responsibility here, regardless of whether a topic is currently "in" and heavily funded or not. Who has control over technological developments? What interests and values, what expertise flows into this? I want to use my experience to create spaces for honest debate.

You are a biologist. How did you find your way from nature to advanced technologies?

Kastenhofer: I started studying biology because I was fascinated by nature and considered it deeply worthy of protection. I collected mud from the seabed and tried to memorize Austria's 3,000 vascular plants. But very quickly that wasn't enough, because I had to realize that nature conservation needs more than just scientific expertise. If we as humans don't communicate with each other about possibilities, we can't protect nature either. And that's exactly what technology assessment is about - to say, technology has an impact on us, on the environment, on our health, on our coexistence, to ask what is needed for a responsible approach.

I then became increasingly involved with other branches of science, with interdisciplinary research and with the differences between scientific cultures. Social conflicts, in particular the controversy surrounding green genetic engineering, ultimately led me to technology research and TA: I was hired by the University of Augsburg for a project. The aim was to better explain how controversies about new technologies arise. How can it be that experts' opinions on certain topics are diametrically opposed? In the case of agricultural genetic engineering, for example, molecular biologists and organic biologists were at odds with each other. How can it be that no consensus is possible here? I was surprised to discover that conflicts over technology are often not about the technology itself, but about business models and the fear that global corporations and their lobbies will exert power over us.

Was the genetic engineering controversy the first technology conflict that you experienced first-hand?

Kastenhofer : I had a formative experience years earlier that influenced my entire career afterwards: as an idealistic young vegetation ecologist, I carried out field research for Natura 2000. My job was to travel through Austria and list biotopes worthy of protection. I was once sent to an orchid meadow by a biology teacher at the local school - but the local farmers had spontaneously mowed it and covered it with liquid manure. The fear of having new regulations imposed on them was overpowering. These people wanted to preserve the environment, but they didn't want to be told how to do it. That's when I realized how important social interaction and communication are. If we had been able to talk to the people there beforehand, we might have avoided this situation.

This experience made me want to look "behind the science". I then dedicated myself to interdisciplinary sustainability research and the sociology of science and, together with like-minded colleagues, put together my own study program, which was still possible in the 1990s with a little extra effort. We wanted to find ways in which interdisciplinary collaboration could function robustly. We also asked ourselves what kind of world view a university course gives you and what kind of value system. How do you integrate what you experience into your own identity as a person, as a researcher, as an expert?

What would you like to achieve for the ITA, or what is particularly important to you in your new role?

Kastenhofer: I see the role of the ITA as being at the cutting edge without being driven by apparent external constraints. Open questions about digitalization will keep us busy for a long time to come. The climate crisis is a necessary point of reference for practically all of our projects. We need quick but also wise decisions, scientific expertise, but also public understanding and democratic negotiation.

I am certainly not interested in explaining the world to the public. People have a good sense of what is actually at stake. We need to take this seriously and build on it. Technology design needs honesty and transparency, it needs mutual listening and joint discussion. And ultimately, conflicts and balancing of interests are also necessary. This is unpleasant, but it cannot be avoided. TA therefore not only needs scientific expertise, but also committed citizens and strong democracies. The one is actually unthinkable without the other. I see it as my job to play a constructive role in this process.

Bio Karen Kastenhofer

Karen Kastenhofer, born in Vienna in 1974 and raised in Lower Austria, has been working at the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in the field of "Governance of Controversial Technologies" since 2007. She is a founding member of the Austrian Association for Science and Technology Studies (STS Austria) and a member of the editorial board of "TATuP - Zeitschrift für Technikfolgenabschätzung in Theorie und Praxis." On June 1, she replaced data protection expert and ITA founding member Walter Peissl as ITA's Deputy Director.

Links

ITA projects
New applications of genetic engineering in animals, algae and microorganisms
5G and health
From 'natural philosophy' to 'life science'
TEK - Techno-epistemic cultures of the life sciences
SYNENERGENE

Bio and list of publications

Perceiving risk as an element

André Gazsó, a risk researcher at the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, and his deputy, Eva-Kathrin Ehmoser (BOKU Vienna), can look back on a successful second term of office: "So far, we have succeeded in creating transparency and non-partisanship when it comes to nanosafety. The NIK brings together high-ranking representatives of Austrian nano research and regulation to discuss and evaluate current developments in this area. This enables us to continuously improve safety for consumers and employees. The NIK also pays particular attention to current developments in the area of standardization and public risk communication. We can communicate transparently about nanomaterials and advanced materials via our web platform "nano-information.at". In this way, politicians have the opportunity to stay up to date with the latest scientific research and explore potential."

Considering the social impact

In addition to his work at the ITA, Gazsó is also a lecturer at the BOKU and head of a course at the Austrian Standards Institute: "The topic of nanotechnologies is very much about uncertainty and how we as a society deal with new technological developments. Through the NanoTrust project, which I lead and which has been active since 2007, I have become more and more involved in the area of risk management. Now, together with the Austrian Standards Institute, we have also been able to implement a course to become a certified risk manager." On June 24, André Gazsó was reappointed Chairman by Federal Minister Johannes Rauch at the Ministry of Health. Together with his deputy Eva-Kathrin Ehmoser, Head of the Institute for Synthetic Bioarchitectures at BOKU, he will now continue to lead the commission until 2028.

Representatives of the social partners sit on the commission alongside scientists from the Austrian Academy of Sciences and many Austrian universities as well as representatives of ministries and authorities. "This diversity is so important because there are so many different aspects to nano. There is not just one 'nanotechnology'. There is a multitude of different processes, techniques and methods that are relevant for various sectors of the economy and also in everyday life," emphasizes Gazsó.

Another development that comes to mind was the size of cell phones: At first, everyone wanted a smaller and smaller cell phone, until they realized that there is a distance from A to B, namely from ear to mouth, which can be estimated on average and should always remain the same - cell phones got bigger again. Now there are Bluetooth headsets, now smartphones have become even bigger.

I know you as someone who has a very strong sense of justice. Do you see that as the main motivation for your life's work?

Peissl: Yes. The issue of justice is a cornerstone of TA. If we perceive all people as equal and there are still differences, we have to investigate where the differences come from: They often come from different interests and designs in economic systems. We can ask questions and not become unscientific if we claim that capitalism promotes inequality. This has been proven many times over. Even if I see that five large tech companies from the USA influence many countries through the tools they provide and which generate a certain global behavior, that is not unscientific.

But I'm not going to attribute anything to myself. I will always attribute everything to the respective team. That's why it's always been important to me that we have people we work well with. My concern has always been to put forward reasonable arguments, to the best of my knowledge and belief, as to why we think what should be done and how. In Austria, we have a constitution, fundamental rights and a lot of knowledge about sustainability and climate change. We can say with a clear conscience that we have always had our finger on the pulse of what is available as a scientific basis. We have never acted in an activist, but always in a factual manner.

Dr. Walter Peissl, Deputy Director of the ITA, retired. He has dedicated himself to technology assessment for over three decades.

As one of the very first employees of the Technology Assessment Unit (TAU), the forerunner of the ITA, Walter Peissl was instrumental in establishing technology assessment in Austria practically from the very beginning. He became deputy director in 1990. During his time, the institute developed from a small, highly motivated research group into a highly professional scientific research institution with around 25 employees. Since all the other members of the original group (apart from the author of these lines) have either moved on or retired, Walter was the living institutional memory until a few days ago. He, who learned from the founding father of technology assessment in Austria and first director, Ernest Braun, went through the school of the political consulting professional and second director, Gunther Tichy, and experienced and helped shape all the ups and downs of the establishment and consolidation of the institute, leaves us a great legacy.

Walter Peissl stands for the fundamental right to privacy

It is undisputed that Walter Peissl as a researcher, despite many other thematic excursions, primarily stands for the protection of privacy. In addition to spreading the idea that every new technology must be examined for its benefits and risks for society before it is used, the topic of privacy can justifiably be described as his life's work. For many years, he was the face of the concept of privacy, especially in Austria. In a way, those who are working on the topic today are standing on his shoulders. This is a great achievement, even if the fight for the protection of this democratically valuable fundamental right is far from over.

First on the international stage

He has also helped to build up the Institute's international reputation, having represented the ITA in the European Parliamentary Technology Assessment (EPTA) network since 1993 and co-founding the German-language Netzwerk Technikfolgenabschätzung (NTA) in 2004. He was also actively involved in a number of EU projects, thereby promoting the Institute's professional and social networking with the TA community.

Over the course of his 36 years at the Institute, Walter Peissl has carried out a total of 77 projects, many of which he led himself. These projects cover practically all of the Institute's subject areas over the decades, with a focus on information and communication technologies. As a true TA practitioner, he was not afraid to repeatedly familiarize himself with a new topic and to embrace interdisciplinarity. In three dozen years, he has also published a great deal: an impressive 300 entries in the ITA publications database and almost 200 lectures.

A future with AI

Of course, Walter will not retire completely: he has just been appointed to the AI Advisory Board of the Austrian Federal Government. However, we will miss him as a colleague at the Institute who was always available, as a source of input for ongoing projects, as an acquirer of new projects and commissions, and as a prudent deputy director of the Institute. We celebrated his farewell as it should be: in the company of companions and colleagues from Austria and abroad, some of whom became friends, and even in the presence of our Scientific Advisory Board members. Walter's life's work in the service of technology assessment was honoured in detail in several speeches, musical and cabaret interludes.

Author: Michael Nentwich
June 19, 2024

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KI-Beirat (German only)

But how can policymakers be advised in the best possible way, what can science do in such complex situations? In the KIRAS project "Epistemic security – on scientific expertise in chronic crises", Alexander Bogner and his team from the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) at the Austrian Academy of Sciences analyzed how scientific policy advice can be designed and what resources are needed to promote trust and create transparency. To this end, previous experiences in Austria, Germany and the UK were compared.

According to the researchers, it is particularly important not to make political decisions entirely dependent on science and to also involve the population.

Download ITA Dossier No. 74, "What does good policy advice look like in times of crisis?" (PDF, 2 pages)

The challenge here is that industrial biotechnology itself often requires large amounts of energy and resources such as water. In the ‘Zukunft Bio-ÖK’ project, commissioned by the German Ministry of the Environment, experts and stakeholders developed options for the future of biotechnology in a sustainable bio-economy.

"Biotechnology offers many opportunities, for example in food production or the recycling of plastic. However, the danger lies in trying to ‘solve’ the problems of our time, such as a lack of resources or growing plastic waste, with new technologies instead of implementing more far-reaching measures", says Gudowsky, summarising the results.

Download: ITA Dossier No. 76, Biotechnology - an opportunity for climate and nature conservation? (PDF, 2 pages)