Margaret E. Kosal, an associate professor in the Ivan Allen College Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, spoke on “Emerging Science and Technologies: Diplomacy, Security, and Governance” at the eighth annual meeting of the Society for the Study of New and Emerging Technologies (S.NET), which was held at the University of Bergen, Norway from October 11 - 14, 2016.

Kosal’s talk explored the relationships between emerging science and technology and diplomacy as part of overall national foreign policy, especially in the interconnected, complex world of the early 21st Century. She discussed approaches and challenges to science (and technology) diplomacy and how it is linked to foreign policy and national security aims, including organizational structures (such as Track I & II diplomacy), bureaucratic politics, risk, public engagement, and governance challenges of balancing realization of the beneficial implications of emerging science and technology while minimizing the potential harm and other threats.

S.NET is an international association that promotes intellectual exchange and critical inquiry about the advancement of new and emerging technologies in society. Its aim is to advance critical reflection from various perspectives on developments in a broad range of new and emerging fields, including, but not limited to, nanoscale science and engineering, biotechnology, synthetic biology, cognitive science and geo-engineering.

Nearly 90 individuals from nearly two dozen countries participated in approximately two dozen different panels, roundtables, and plenary sessions, as listed in the final program.