Friday, October 7, 2011

 

The Challenge of Path Dependency and the Need for Anticipatory Governance
-Jameson Wetmore, Arizona State University

 

About the Seminar

Many experts argue that we need to change a number of our large technological systems in order to adapt to the increasing number of challenges our society faces. There are questions about the sustainability of everything from our energy systems to transportation networks. But changing such things is never an easy task. This is partially a result of a phenomenon known as "path dependence," a situation in which initial conditions establish a trajectory, making changes or reversal increasingly difficult.

 

Research on path dependence is critical for understanding how institutions can be adapted to address global change, both in the sense of understanding why change is so difficult in some situations-and what can be done about it-and understanding how negative trajectories can be avoided. This presentation will explore how the existence of path dependent processes increases considerably the need for anticipatory governance. It will analyze a few historical examples to demonstrate how early and broad assessment of technologies and situations can help promote more beneficial path dependence.

About the Speaker

Jameson Wetmore is an assistant professor in the School of Human Evolution & Social Change and the Consortium for Science, Policy & Outcomes at Arizona State University. He has a PhD in Science & Technology Studies from Cornell University. He studies the social dimensions of technology with particular interests in regulation, social implications, and the development of new ways to help scientists and engineers understand their impacts on and responsibilities to the world. He recently edited two volumes: Technology & Society: Building Our Sociotechnical Future (MIT Press) and the Yearbook of Nanotechnology in Society, Volume 2: Nanotechnology and the Challenges of Equity, Equality, and Development (Springer).