Episode 6
COVID Knowledge, Technology, and Politics: Dispatches from Around the World
April 20, 2020
Jack and Shobita talk to five experts in science, technology, policy, and society about their perspectives and experiences with COVID-19 around the world. Interviews include Monamie Bhadra (Singapore), Silvio Funtowicz (Italy), Roger Pielke (US), Poonam Pandey (India), and Michael Veale (UK).
Benjamin Pauli (2019). Flint Fights Back: Environmental Justice and Democracy in the Flint Water Crisis. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
BBC Radio 4 (2019)."Water: Laurie Taylor explores the cultural life of a natural substance." Thinking Allowed.
Ben Pauli (2019). "Flint Fights Back: In Conversation With Benjamin Pauli." MIT Press Blog.
Interview with Ben Pauli: “Flint Fights Back' Looks at State of Democracy, Environmental Justice After Water Crisis.” Detroit Today. August 15, 2019.
Ben Pauli (2017). "In Gov. Snyder’s Flint oversight board’s decision on a tax lien moratorium, more than just finances are at stake." Eclecta Blog.
GUESTS:
Monamie Bhadra Haines is Assistant Professor of Global Science, Technology, and Society in the School of Social Sciences at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Her work focuses on understanding the political and cultural implications of energy transitions in the developing world, specifically contexts in Asia. You can find her on Twitter: @BhadraMonamie.
Silvio Funtowicz is Professor in the Center for the Study of the Sciences and the Humanities at the University of Bergen, Norway. He is a philosopher of science and tweets at @SFuntowicz.
Roger Pielke Jr. is Professor in the Environmental Studies Program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He where he teaches and writes on a diverse range of policy and governance issues related to science, innovation, sports. He tweets at @RogerPielkeJr.
Poonam Pandey is Postdoctoral Fellow in the DST-Centre for Policy Research at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. Her work at DST-CPR engages with Responsible Research and Innovation and policy aspects of second generation (2G) bioethanol in India and Brazil.
Michael Veale is Lecturer in Digital Rights and Regulation at University College London’s Faculty of Laws and Fellow at the Alan Turing Institute. He specialises in technology law and policy, particularly around, privacy, data protection, and emerging technologies such as machine learning and encrypted data analysis. He tweets (likely too much) at @mikarv.
Study Questions:
What role should academic analysis play in policymaking during an emergency and how should we balance speed and deliberation?
What problems arise when policies like lockdowns, which were developed in developed nations, are applied to developing nations?
What does Monamie Bhadra Haines say the weak link in the Singaporean response to the pandemic has been and why does she say it was overlooked?
For Further Reading:
Hallam Stevens and Monamie Bhadra Haines (2020). "Does Singapore need mandatory contact tracing apps?" Academia SG. May 18.
Silvio O. Funtowicz and Jerome R. Ravetz (1993). "Science for the Post Normal Age." Futures. September. pp. 739-755.
Roger Pielke Jr. (2020). "Eight Weeks Behind: Clarifying the Early U.S. Coronavirus Testing Failure."
Roger Pielke Jr. (2020). "Why Isn’t the White House Using the Nation’s Pandemic Experts?" Slate. April 10.
Ritu Priya and V. Sujatha (2020). "Will Traditional Indian Medicine Be Allowed to Contribute to the Fight Against COVID-19?" The Wire. April 1.
Human Rights Watch (2020). "India: COVID-19 Lockdown Puts Poor at Risk." March 27.