Under what conditions does science influence environmental policy? International relations (IR) scholars argue that to gain political influence, science should not connect to policy before scientific consensus has been reached. We take this suggestion as a point of departure for investigating...

During the last decade there have been growing calls for increased public inclusion in risk regulation. This paper investigates three of these proposals for a new relationship between science and the public, namely New Production of Knowledge, Postnormal Science, and Scientific Citizenship....

Although many countries with nuclear power have opted for geological disposal as the ultimate solution to the problem of nuclear waste, many of them face great problems in implementing their policies. However, at the same time as the responsible agencies in many countries ponder on how to find...

In recent years there has been a great deal of discussion on the potential for a shift away from modernistic or technocratic approaches to decision-making on risk towards more open, inclusive and deliberative approaches. This paper adopts an approach which analyses not the social but the private...

In this paper we discuss whether environmental impact assessment (EIA) can serve as an arena for including citizens in the decisionmaking process. Through a case study of a proposed extension of a regional airport in Sweden, the role of EIA, and to what degree different actors and arguments...

In recent years there has been a great deal of discussion on the potential for a shift away from modernistic or technocratic approaches to decisionmaking on risk towards more open, inclusive, and deliberative approaches. The authors consider (a) the reasons why some companies have taken the...

The theoretical disputes over forest nitrogen (N) fertilization constitute a difficulty for forest managers. In cases where scientists disagree it is hard for practitioners to make scientifically based decisions on what actions to take. The main objective in this study was to understand possible...

This paper discusses the development of Swedish policy for mercury waste management. Starting with a description of the development of the policy for hazardous waste management in Sweden, the paper examines the process which led to the parliamentary decision that mercury waste should be gathered...

All citizens, irrespective of their geographical location, have a stake in the global environment. At the same time, they have different interests as well as unequal resources concerning the possibility of developing strategies and influencing environmental agendas and decisions. This forms the...

The purpose of the article is to discuss the democratic implications of climate change and whether or not it is possible to harmonize basic democratic values with the challenges raised by global warming. Highlighting three central democratic mechanisms it is argued that even if participation and...