Abstract
Using a comparative approach to the public debate on GMOs in France and the United Kingdom, this text analyses the interactions between associative actions and participative mechanisms. Such mechanisms (consensus conferences, citizen juries, interactive technological evaluation, etc.) are nurtured by the crucial work of the groups involved to construct a problem and develop alternatives to current, dominant opinions. Thus action and participative mechanisms have the potential to offer a complementary method of social control over scientific and technical trajectories, as well as to enlarge the frameworks for risk analysis. We analyse here the reasons for the problematic nature of appropriation of what is produced in the “small world” of participatory mechanisms by associative actors and by the advocates of traditional decision-making procedures. Finally, we discuss the possibilities for moving beyond such obstacles.
| Translated title of the contribution | Participation and NGO activism: a comparative analysis of the GM debate in France and the UK |
|---|---|
| Original language | French |
| Pages (from-to) | 195-206 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Revue internationale de politique comparée |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2003 |