The Centre for Science, Society and Citizenship is a private company, registered as a research centre by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (nr 52902MMF), that was set up in October 2001 as a direct result of the research project “Bioethical Implications of Globalisation Processes” (BIG) funded by the European Commission in the scope of the 5th FP.
The centre places particular importance on the ethical dimension in science and the new technologies, and to the challenges posed by economic globalisation to health. In particular the centre addresses the sociological, economic, philosophical, and psychological implications of globalisation processes related to liberalisation of trade, mobility of people, technological globalisation and new global conflicts including bioterrorism.
A feature of the Centre is the interdisciplinary nature of its work. The CSSC places special emphasis on the need to compare data coming from psychology, sociology, anthropology and philosophy with empirical data obtained through foresight exercises, including Delphi processes, and other initiatives such as focus groups, surveys, e-debates and e-forums.