André Gazsó, Senior Reseacher at the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, has been analysing the spread of nanotechnologies and nanomaterials since 2010. He believes there is still a need for a better clarification of their properties and a necessity for international standardisation:
"Nanomaterials, like all new technical developments, are associated with great uncertainties in addition to their advantages. That is why we urgently need to create international standards in the field of nanotechnology to ensure more safety," Gazsó emphasises. A first step has been achieved: Austrian nano-researchers and scientists with an expertise in technology assessment now share the room when health and environmental effects of nanomaterials are discussed in international standards committees.
In the recently published ITA dossier "NanoStandards", Gazsó and his colleagues Gloria Rose and Anna Pavlicek describe the dangers and risks of nanomaterials and give recommendations for policy-makers and the Austrian nano-research landscape.