A new research priority area at the Institute for Advanced Study
6 March 2025
Climate change, environmental degradation, misinformation, irresponsible use of AI, and a potential pandemic: the challenges of the future require scientifically informed policies and equipped citizens. But how do we align science and policy? How do we communicate the scientific method, including its shortcomings? How do we best engage the public when it comes to the uncertainty of scientific knowledge?
Citizen science projects are already taking place around the world, but scientific research is in a dynamic tension with societal engagement and its inherent rules and expectations. Conversely, the diversity of public spheres and public issues needs to be considered by scientific research.
The RPA ‘Shaping Interfaces Between Science and the Public’ aims to open a methodological window to the world, making clearer how different fields of science work, how knowledge is created, and with what uncertainties it is surrounded.
Under the direction of Huub Dijstelbloem, RPA project leader and Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) director, a Public Methodology Centre will be established at IAS to achieve this goal. The centre will bring together researchers from various UvA faculties, including many of the current and previous IAS Associates and Research Leads, such as Claudi Bockting, Rens Bod, Denny Borsboom, Selin Gerlek, and Sonja Smets.
In collaboration with citizen science and numerous practices and professions, the Public Methodology Centre will develop interfaces in the broad sense. Interfaces can be apps to monitor mental well-being, climate models that communicate risk, or dialogues on AI and quantum. The Public Methodology Centre will offer an interfaculty creative space to build external partnerships and intensify the relationship between academia, citizens, policymaking, NGOs and businesses interested in the interfaces between science and the public.
Thanks to the opportunites and collaborations that will arise from the Public Methodology Centre, the new RPA will develop a more sophisticated yet radical approach to strengthen the place of science in society and combine scientific citizenship with advances in science.