Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
transmitted primarily via unprotected sexual intercourse (including
anal and oral sex), contaminated blood transfusions and hypoder-
mic needles, and from mother to child during pregnancy, delivery
or breastfeeding. There is no current cure or vaccine; however,
antiretroviral treatment can slow the course of the disease and may
lead to a near-normal life expectancy. The illness was first discovered
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United
States. The purposeful development of 'expertise' among gay men
in San Francisco and New York played a significant role in changing
the methodology of clinical drug trials designed to ascertain how to
treat HIV/AIDS.
Among the best-known procedures for facilitating citizen engagement
with science upstream and mid-stream are the following:
•
Citizen juries.
Between 12 and 20 randomly selected citizens are assem-
bled to hear expert witnesses testify about a pre-selected issue of wide
citizen relevance. For instance, the issue could be whether cloning
humans is desirable, even if it's technically possible. The jury deliber-
ates over a period of days and uses testimony to form a considered view.
This may be expressed as a report.
•
Citizen consensus conferences.
As with juries, a citizen panel is chosen
to be demographically representative of the wider public. Members of the
panel are given written or audio-visual material prepared by a facilitator in
order to gain a basic understanding of the issue at hand. The panel then
participates in a conference lasting 2-4 days. Over the duration of the
conference, the citizens' panel participates in a Q&A session with experts
where they hear opposing views. Citizens then prepare a final document
containing their stances, arguments and recommendations for the issue.
On the last day of the conference, the panel then discusses their final
document with policymakers and stakeholders.
•
Science shops
. Often attached to a specific department of a university
or an NGO, these 'shops' provide independent participatory research
support in response to concerns expressed by civil society actors. It's a
demand-driven and bottom-up approach to research. Science shops were
first established in the Netherlands in the 1970s and their main function
is to increase both public awareness and provide access to science and
technology to laymen or non-profit organisations.
These and other cognate procedures are inspired by the ideals of 'deliber-
ative democracy' (without being reducible to them). Unlike the procedures
comprising a 'representative democracy' (such as periodic elections and par-
liaments or, in the scientific realm, a body like the IPCC), they foster
direct
interaction between citizens and those whose actions will affect their lives
