The Good Governance Of Nanotechnology From STS-Perspective

The good governance of nanotechnology is recently a main research field of nanotechnology in society,and also a new research direction in the field of the study of science,technology and society(STS).Facing with the uncertainty of nanotechnology and value conflicts of modern pluralistic society,the good governance of nanotechnology is devoted to exploring a new mode to guide sustainable development while regulating the upstream ethically in the process of nanotechnology development.The good governance is based on the context of science and culture of nanotechnology and the principle of practical wisdom.It reflects different interests of different stakeholders and investigates the benefits and risks multivariable,instantly,integrally and dynamically.By comparing and analyzing the governance theories in different frameworks,we propose and demonstrate that the good governance is the best governance,which not only refers to the governance from bottom up,but also involves the factors of time,space and environment integrally and instantly.The ethical basis of good governance is practical wisdom.The good governance has three main features as follows.The first is contextualization,which principally emphasizes the practical context,including the factors of technology,politics,economics and culture.The second is real-time,that is,according to the features of objects of the good governance,it requests a set of criterion at different phases and evaluate dynamically.The third is diversity,which emphasizes that all stakeholders should be included in the wide participation in view of the plural values in modern society.To sum up,the theoretical foundation of the good governance can be characterized by modesty and prudence.The paper begins with the analysis of the necessity and possibility of the good governance of nanotechnology,pointing out that the complex,mediated and uncertain features of nanotechnology itself,the unknown and ignorant aspects of new characteristics of nanotechnology,the cultural conflicts,value conflicts of stakeholders,game of power in the process of nanotechnology development,lead to not only huge economic and social progress,but also certain risks.Therefore,it is necessary to control and prevent the possible risks of nanotechnology in the way of the good governance.And then,the paper elaborates that nanotechnology depends on its technological evolution law and the construction of several social factors.The close relationship between nanotechnology and politics provides the governance of technology with the premise of possibility.Then we explore the feasible principles and strategies from macroscopic and microscopic aspects based on the practical wisdom.On the macro level,we explore new modes of technology assessment which is suitable for nanotechnology under the principle of contextualization,real-time and diversity,that is,taking vision assessment,real-time technology assessment and constructive technology assessment as feasible means of the good governance.What's more,we propose that the top-down governance of government regulation should work with the down-top governance of public participation,namely the cooperative governance of the government and the public.On the micro level,by analyzing the feasible principles and strategies of the good governance of nanotechnology,the paper indicates that the science community,business circles and the government should work together in order to realize the good governance of nanotechnology,and then promotes the responsible development of nanotechnology.It is of great importance to research and develop nanotechnology with the research of the governance of nanotechnology simultaneously.