Nanotechnology: Regulation and Public Discourse (Philosophy, Technology and Society)

Over the last decades, nanoscience and nanotechnology has been ascribed the potential to contribute beneficial applications in fields such as medicine, cosmetics, or environmental remediation. At the same time it is still contested whether engineered nanomaterials might be not one-sidedly “good” but may also entail negative side-effects for human health and the environment. To address this uncertainty, academic and political initiatives have sought to establish norms and practices to assess and govern nanomaterials.

Rooted in different disciplines such as ethics, ecology, law, social and political sciences, the chapters in this edited volume explore the normative approaches, societal practices, and legal mechanisms which have emerged in the nano-field over the last two decades. The chapters also present a broad variety of evaluative approaches that may assist societal actors in their attempts to actively shape and contribute to the debate about nanomaterials.

Iris Eisenberger is Professor at and Head of the Institute of Law at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna, Austria. Her research focuses on law and innovation, environmental law and research law as well as the didactics of law.

Angelika Kallhoff is a Professor of Ethics with special emphasis on Applied Ethics at the University of Vienna’s Department of Philosophy and the director of the Research Platform Nano-Norms-Nature. Her research interests are in the area of ethics, applied ethics, and political philosophy.

Claudia Schwarz-Plaschg is University Assistant (post doc) at the Research Platform Nano-Norms-Nature at the University of Vienna. Her research explores the co-shaping of emerging technosciences and society with a specific focus on the area of nanotechnology.