Sydney-Tilburg conference

Sydney-Tilburg conference on EVIDENCE, SCIENCE AND PUBLIC POLICY

 

26-28 March 2009

 

Sydney Centre for the Foundations of Science

University of Sydney

Sydney, Australia

 

 

in conjunction with

 

Tilburg Center for Logic and Philosophy of Science

Tilburg University, The Netherlands

 

 

The relationship between science and public policy is complex. Good public policy on matters such as the environment, climate change, health, the economy, and justice must be informed by good science. But this science needs to be conducted in ways amenable to the needs of the policy makers and the results communicated in ways accessible to both the policy makers and the public at large. Public policy issues might even impinge on the science itself. For example, acceptable levels of error might be thought to be determined by the consequences of the decisions to be made using the scientific findings. This raises many interesting philosophical questions about the relationship between science, evidence and public policy. Should science remain independent of policy decisions and concern itself only with evidence? Is this possible? What is evidence-based medicine and does it live up to its advertising?  What is evidence-based public policy and what does it offer above standard policy making? Our goal in this conference is to bring together philosophers of science, political philosophers, policy makers, and other researchers interested in the science-policy interface. We welcome papers on any of the above questions as well as papers on broader issues concerning evidence, especially in applied contexts (e.g.  legal, medical, and environmental).

 

We invite submissions of extended abstracts of up to 1000 words through our automatic submission system by 1 December 2008. Decisions will be made by 15 January 2009.

 

The conference language is English.

 

Organizers

Mark Colyvan, University of Sydney

Stephan Hartmann, Tilburg University

James Justus, University of Sydney and Florida State University

Jan Sprenger, Tilburg University

 

Program Committee

 

Peter Achinstein, John Hopkins University

Rachel Ankeny, University of Adelaide

Luc Bovens, London School of Economics

David Braddon-Mitchell, University of Sydney

Melinda Fagan, Rice University

Branden Fitelson, University of California at Berkeley

Marc Fleurbaey, CNRS et Université Paris

Bob Goodin, ANU

Paul Griffiths, University of Sydney

Jason Grossman, ANU

Francesco Guala, University of Exeter

Alan Hajek, ANU

John Harris, University of Manchester

Kevin D. Hoover, Duke University

Ian Kerridge, University of Sydney

Philip Kitcher, Columbia University

Christian List, London School of Economics

Deborah Mayo, Virginia Tech University

Wlodek Rabinowicz, Lunds University

Sherrilyn Roush, University of California at Berkeley

Kristin Shrader-Frechette, University of Notre-Dame

Wolfgang Spohn, University of Konstanz

Katie Steele, London School of Economics

Jon Williamson, University of Kent

Jonathan Wolff, University College London

John Woods, University of British Columbia

 

Dates and Deadlines

1 December 2008: Extended abstract submission

15 January 2009: Notification of acceptance

15 March 2009: Registration deadline

26-28 March 2009: Conference

 

Keynote Speakers

 

Mark Burgman, University of Melbourne.

 

John Quiggin, University of Queensland.

 

John Worrall, London School of Economics.

 

http://sydcfs.org.au/home.html