Paul Nurse, Peter Piot and Christiane Woopen on ethics and multidisciplinarity

Why is multidisciplinary science advice so difficult, and are there ways to make it easier? Should policymakers seek ethics advice as well as science advice? When there is a conflict between the values embedded in different cultural contexts, how can we navigate the conflict sensitively?

Christiane Woopen, Paul Nurse and Peter Piot discuss these questions with Toby Wardman of SAPEA. We also discuss the unique challenges of giving advice in a crisis, the relationship between ‘discovery’ and applied science, and whether Rambo would make a good government advisor.

Resources discussed in this episode

• Joint statement on scientific advice during COVID-19: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/346c8eaf-ba79-11ea-811c-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-139601691
• Joint opinion on improving pandemic preparedness and management: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/a1016d77-2562-11eb-9d7e-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-171481573