Greenwall Co-sponsors Consensus Study to Develop Governance Framework for Emerging Science, Technology, and Innovation

Rapid developments in emerging technologies raise exciting possibilities and important questions about ethics, access, and equity. With science racing ahead, it’s critical to ask even if we can do something, should we?

In 2020, the National Academy of Medicine launched the Committee on Emerging Science, Technology, and Innovation (CESTI) to “assess the landscape of emerging scientific advances and technologies in health and medicine and address the potential societal, ethical, legal, and workforce implications of such technologies.”

 In a recent New England Journal of Medicine article reflecting on CESTI’s findings, Greenwall Faculty Scholar Alum Debra J.H. Mathews, PhD, and coauthors Celynne A. Balatbat, and Victor J. Dzau, MD, argued that emerging technology “demands iterative, dynamic governance.” To that end, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine are conducting a consensus study, co-sponsored by The Greenwall Foundation, that will build on CESTI’s work and “develop a cross-sectoral coordinated governance framework founded upon core ethical principles with a focus on equity, for considering the potential benefits and risks that emerging science, technology, and innovation in health and medicine can bring to society.”

Greenwall Faculty Scholars Program Committee Member Keith Wailoo, PhD, is co-chair of the consensus study committee, whose members include Prof. Matthews, Making a Difference Grantee Arti Rai, PhD, and former Faculty Scholars Program Committee Member R. Alta Charo, JD. Through the consensus study, the committee will  “provide guidance for how to manage the risks, benefits, and ethical and societal implications of new technologies.”

The committee will host a public session about the study on June 9, at 1:15 pm ET. At this virtual event, invited speakers and committee members will discuss the pathway from research to innovation and the relationship between equity, justice, and emerging innovation. The slate of invited speakers include the Foundation’s President & CEO, Michelle Groman, JD, and Greenwall Faculty Scholar Holly Fernandez Lynch, JD.

The public session open to all; the preliminary agenda and registration information can be found here.