Institutionalizing ethical debates in science, technology and innovation policy: A comparison of Europe, India and China

Abstract

Both in Europe and in the emerging economies of China and India, the core of science, technology and innovation policy is broadly similar: stimulating science and technology as important factors in developing innovative solutions to societal needs. In Europe we have witnessed a significant increase in ethical debates on science, technology and innovation, in the sense of both greater intensity and a wider plurality of voices. Central in these debates is the fear for negative consequences of science, technology and innovation. The European debate on genetic modification in agriculture is a well-documented example of the ‘ethicization’ of the public discourse on science, technology and innovation. Nowadays, developments in science, technology and innovation are global phenomena in which scientists and technology experts from different countries cooperate in international consortia. Innovative solutions are often transferred globally and adapted locally. Against this background, we compare the institutionalisation of ethics debates in Europe with China and India: to what extent is there a global ethics in science and technology, and how are ethical debates institutionalized in science, technology and innovation policies? We found that each region has a unique structure of ethics debates involving the institutionalization of three related tasks: ethical governance, ethical deliberation and ethical reflection.