Malcolm Wicks on engaging the public

There has never been a better time to debate the central role science plays in our modern economy and society.

As new discoveries are made and new technologies emerge over the coming decades, we are going to have some huge discussions about their ethical, social and environmental implications.

The accelerating pace of change and the challenges ahead, such as climate change and an ageing population, mean that it has become increasingly vital that we talk about what the future might look like and what it might mean.

Science and technology are absolutely central to this. Science must be, and be seen to be, firmly embedded within society, and it must earn its licence to operate from society. 

Informing decision making

We need to widen engagement to help inform government policy and decision making, and also build capacity for debate, reflection, understanding and appreciation of the wider benefits of science and technology to society – to create a true knowledge democracy.

The result will be a society that builds from its current pro-science stance. It will help ensure a healthy supply of the brightest and best researchers, and mean that decision makers are able to understand and respond to public aspirations, expectations and concerns around emerging science and technology.

Research has shown emphatically that the British public is not anti-science. Indeed, the very opposite is true. Over four-fifths of those surveyed by my department in 2004 agreed that science makes a good contribution to society, and 97 per cent of people agreed that it is important that our young people have a good grasp of science.

Yet, we are acutely aware of legitimate concerns over how certain areas of science and technology are governed, and over the relationship between private and public sector research.

Sciencewise

Because science needs its social licence to operate, we all need to be part of making informed decisions about how we develop and use scientific and technological advances and how science and innovation are governed.

This is why we have developed a progressive and world-leading programme of public engagement with science that takes us far from the old and tired public understanding of science model that has held us back for too long. In January, I launched sciencehorizons – the first ever mass public engagement programme designed to get the nation talking about the science and technology of the future.

What is important about sciencehorizons is that we are inviting everyone to take part, not only the scientists, but the whole community. The aim is to spark lively debates on these important issues.

The discussions will use a specially-designed pack showing how life in 2025 could differ from today and is based on the Horizon Scans papers that map out potential future technological developments.

We want everyone to take part. Community groups, schools, families and friends up and down the country have been invited to get together in village halls, classrooms, living rooms and pubs to have their own sciencehorizons discussions. In fact since the launch almost 2,000 discussion packs have been requested by community groups and schools across the UK.

Public events

Larger public events have already taken place across the country and are planned in the months ahead. For example, in April and May a panel made up of members of the public and local scientists in Bristol looked at the issues presented in sciencehorizons in greater depth. In June, policymakers will participate in a seminar to discuss the results and discuss how the findings can help inform policy, and the final report will be launched at the BA Festival of Science in York in September.

The results of all these activities will be used to inform policy, setting the direction of research and regulation of science and technology.

The project is part of the DTI’s Sciencewise programme that helps policy makers commission and use public dialogue to inform decision making in emerging areas of science and technology.

Another major national Sciencewise project is drugsfutures. This will explore the issues around advances in brain science and their implications for the future of drugs. It will inform the Academy of Medical Sciences’ advice to government on the future development of drug-related research and policy.

Stem cell research

I also recently announced another Sciencewise project, in the area of stem cell research.

The UK’s two major public funders of stem cell research – the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) – have been awarded a £300,000 grant to run a public dialogue programme to gain insight into public attitudes to stem cell research.

In this fast-moving and important area of science, it is essential to hear public concerns, views and attitudes, as well as to provide an opportunity for scientists to discuss with the public the challenges that researchers face and the potential benefits from this challenging field of research.

The government believes that stem cell research offers enormous potential to deliver new treatments for many devastating diseases where there is currently no effective cure. Huge numbers of people are affected by these diseases and Britain is a world leader in stem cell research.

But there must be a proper dialogue with the wider public on stem cell research because we need to raise public awareness about the potential opportunities in this area, and researchers in this critical area must be able to hear, understand and respond to public hopes and concerns. This is why this new Sciencewise project is so important.

A key element will be to raise awareness about world-class stem cell research in the UK and the progress that is being made towards potential treatments, while communicating realistic examples of its potential.

The public dialogue will start in the next few months with the recruiting of a commissioning group, followed by an official launch this autumn.

New public dialogue centre

To take the wider Sciencewise agenda further, the Chancellor announced in the Pre-Budget Report the establishment of an expert resource centre for public dialogue on science and innovation.

This will build, across government, capacity and learning regarding the value, methods and use of public dialogue in informing policy and decision making on scientific and technological issues. It will operate as a ‘virtual’ resource and is being developed initially through the existing Sciencewise programme.

The drive for wide engagement in science was a key aim of National Science and Engineering Week that took place in March, with thousands of events around the country and involving up to a million people, including reaching over 300 schools that had never before taken part in science week. The week is a great time to look at the work going on in schools and laboratories all around the country to see the discoveries of the future and to help spark the imagination of teachers, pupils and parents.

There is a strong desire among the scientific community to engage with the wider public on wider issues, to build trust and awareness. It is a two-way process, and this is why I welcome the Beacons for Public Engagement initiative recently launched by Research Councils UK, the higher education funding councils and the Wellcome Trust.

Ethical code

I am also grateful to the Government Chief Scientific Adviser for his leadership in taking forward the Universal Ethical Code for Scientists. The code sets down some basic practices and beliefs explicitly, and the aim is that it should be seen as a simple illustration of the scientists’ promise to the community, and as a demonstration to the public that scientists take ethical issues seriously.

We must build on our pro-science culture, ensure that we earn public trust, and encourage wide engagement. In fact, we cannot afford not to. The challenges ahead are just too great for the world of science and technology to work in splendid isolation. A knowledge democracy is vital to our knowledge-based economy.

Malcolm Wicks is Minister for Science and Innovation in the Department of Trade & Industry