Call for papers

Citizen science: new epistemological, ethical and political challenges

International workshop, Université de Lyon, France

June 6-7, 2019

Description: This one-and-half-day international workshop is organized in the framework of the PartiSCiP project (www.partiscip.com), which focuses on the impact on scientific objectivity of public participation in science. The opening of the very process of production of scientific knowledge and expertise to non-professional scientists benefits increasingly from institutional and political support. This development of “citizen science”, “participatory science” and other forms of science involving in one way or another lay people raises various new epistemological challenges. How does public participation influence the epistemic properties of the research process and its outcomes? In particular, how objectivity is affected by this participation? The workshop will also explore, more broadly, ethical and political challenges raised by citizen science, by bringing together philosophers of science, jurists, sociologists and scientists involved in citizen science programs.

Possible topics of contribution include: theoretical and empirically informed analysis about objectivity as a social, intersubjective process; issues about conflicts of values and biases, dissent and consensus formation; epistemic responsibility; issues of under-representation in participatory science; deliberative practices in science and in democracy; feedbacks on past or ongoing citizen science programs.

Confirmed keynote speakers:

–       Justin Biddle (Georgia Institute of Technology)

–       Romain Julliard (Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, Paris)

–       Kristina Rollin (Helsinki University)

Organizers: Stéphanie Ruphy (Université de Lyon) and Baptiste Bedessem (Université de Lyon)

Submissions: Please send an abstract (no more than 500 words) of the talk with your name and affiliation and a list of keywords to stephanie.ruphy@univ-lyon3.fr and baptiste.bedessemp@gmail.com.

Deadline for submissions: 10 April 2019. Notification of acceptance will be send within ten days. Participants who do not give a talk are also welcome and are asked to register in advance. There is no registration fee.