About PISA

Starting from the insight that a full understanding of the benefits and risks of applications of radioactivity and nuclear technology requires also an understanding of the context of application and related politico-economical, social and ethical aspects, SCK•CEN started in 1999 with its PISA research programme (Programme of Integration of Social Aspects into nuclear research). The aim of the research was (and still is):

• to engage nuclear and non-nucear researchers and policy makers in transdisciplinary research activities that can generate better insight into the complex issue of societal justification of nuclear applications;
• to shed new lights on how to organise in a responsible way the involvement of civil society in nuclear technology assessment, both at research and policy level;
• to explore aspects of and criteria for 'good science for better governance' in connection to complex technological applications, with a special focus on the generation and use of knowledge at the science-policy interface;
• to make these insights available to national and international research networks and policy makers.