What is the Precautionary Principle, and is it Good or Bad? | Andrew Maynard | Risk Bites

Показать описание

Plenty of people have an opinion on whether the precautionary principle is good or bad, but what exactly is it?

Risk Bites dives into the precautionary principle, and provides an essential background for understanding its relevance in areas like responsible innovation and risk innovation.

RESOURCES

The Risk Bites Team:
Producer: Andrew Maynard
Research Director: David Faulkner

Risk Bites is your guide to making sense of risk. We cover everything from understanding and balancing the risks and benefits of everyday products, to health science more broadly, to the potential impacts of emerging technologies, to making sense of risk perception. If you enjoy our videos, please subscribe, and spread the word!

Рекомендации по теме

Комментарии

Thanks Shaun,

I think that the image alone probably overstates the case here, as the full context is go slow "where there are indications of potentially serious consequences if we don't get things right" - i.e. its being responsive to early warnings that there may be dangers ahead rather than a generic "go slow". But point taken!

riskbites

Another fine Risk Byte. The only quibble I have is the closing comment that we need to "go slow". Perhaps an alternate way to make the point would be to restate this to be somwething like "measured pace". Or "don't get too far ahead of your guardian angel.

sfclancyphd

well done. my only quibble is that sometimes to be cautious... requires action... not more research/time/inaction. For example, to be cautious in the face of a looming wildfire, the cautious thing do to (even in the absence of certainty of the future path of the fire) is to RUN of there as fast as possible. Thus, to employ the precautionary principle might lead one to action now, work out the details later. (e.g., a "measured", rational but better safe than sorry so act now approach to the potential of climate change to create uninhabitable situations in the future.) well done.

petersherman

Incredibly helpful video, thank you so much!

mickeyl

There are dozens of precautionary principles, and they say quite different things. There is no answer to the question "is the precautionary principle good or bad" because the phrase "the precautionary principle" fails to refer to anything.

skiingbull