Stakeholder and Public Involvement

Abstract

The risk governance process, as it has been described in Chap.​ 4 implies decision-making processes which affect various groups of actors. On a general level, there is the distinction between the risk producers on the one hand, and those who are exposed to the risks on the other hand. It is obvious, that between these two groups, conflicting interests are to be expected. The two groups can be further divided into subgroups with distinct interests of their own, the so called stakeholder. They are defined here “as socially organised groups that are or will be affected by the outcome of the event or the activity from which the risk originates and/or by the risk management options taken to counter the risk” (IRGC 2005:49). In general risk issues affect the four main stakeholders in society. These are political, business, scientific and civil society representatives (as far as they are socially organized). Additionally, other groups that play a role in the risk governance process can be defined: the media, cultural elites and opinion leaders, and the general public, either in their role as non-organized affected public, or as the non-organized observing public (cf. IRGC 2005:50).