How are we going to use our new-found knowledge of the brain?
The world of science fiction is almost here. Developments in brain science mean scientists and doctors can understand the brain in ways we couldn’t have foreseen a decade ago and future developments could go well beyond our wildest imagination. However, if new technologies and drugs can alter, enhance and control our brains then will they change what it means to be human? Should such practices be encouraged or suppressed? How are we going to use our new-found knowledge of the brain?
Meeting of Minds - European Citizens' Deliberation on Brain Science is a unique exercise involving the general public in a discussion on cutting-edge science. Citizens from nine European countries suggested what they think should be done with our new-found knowledge of the brain. Throughout 2005 and into early 2006 they have debated the ethical, social and legal implications with international experts. The citizens’ conclusions on the use of new technology, medicines and techniques are currently being offered to policy-makers at the European, national and transnational level.
This website provides information about the project and aims to stimulate the debate.
From this page you can also access the country sites of the participating partner organisations.
Meeting of Minds positively evaluated. Internal and external evaluation reports available
Meeting of Minds was "innovative and significant for European policy making and as rewarding for all who had the opportunity to participate," states an independent external evaluation report written by Rüdiger Goldschmidt and Ortwin Renn from Dialogik gGmbH. The external evaluation team had been commissioned by the partner consortium to review the methodological concept, the procedural design and the actual performance of the Meeting of Minds ECD-Project. "It accomplished all envisioned objectives - the content related objectives with great succes, the procedural objectives with satisfactory success."
On the basis of systematic observations of communication and interaction processes at European level of all those involved in the process, including stakeholders, the report concludes that "the Meeting of Minds Project documents the feasibility, the effectiveness and the efficiency of public participation even at a multinational European level." It considers that all the methodological experiences gained during the process constitute a valuable base for developing participatory governance and technology assessment at European level. In effect, Meeting of Minds has already served as a reference of best practice for the European Citizens' Consultations launched Autumn 2006 under the lead of the King Baudouin Foundation.
The Meeting of Minds partner consortium also undertook a process of self-evaluation focusing on the internal aspects of the deliberation process, implementation of the method and organisation. It was aimed at immediate learning, adjusting the participatory process and knowledge building and consisted of gathering information from the various participants - particularly the citizens' panel- throughout the entire trajectory. The internal evaluation report written by Alison Mohr from the Centre for the Study of Democracy at the University of Westminster, points out that the 126 laypeople who took part in the deliberations consider that "their personal expectations were highly congruent with the outcomes of the European conventions."
Both evaluation reports give a critical assessment of the project and provide valuable insight into Meeting of Minds and how it was implemented.
Read the executive summary of the internal evaluation report. For the full text of the internal evaluation report click here (pdf 468,17kb).
Read the executive summary of the external evaluation report. For the full text of the external evaluation report click here (pdf 1754,34kb).
European Citizens' Deliberation. Method Description
The Meeting of Minds Partner Consortium has recently completed a method manual presenting a description of the European Citizens' Deliberation and lessons learned during the Meeting of Minds project. The Consortium hopes that this document will serve as a source of inspiration for practitioners developing other multilingual projects at international level. The development of the method was an integral part of the Meeting of Minds initiative which ran from 2004 until 2007 and aimed to set a standard for transnational public deliberations in other policy areas. It is the last deliverable in a thrilling and inspiring experience that has made many waves among policy makers at all levels.
The ECD method has been published as a seperate component of the Participatory Methods Toolkit, an initiative of the King Baudouin Foundation and the Flemish Institute for Science and Technology Assessment. The toolkit is designed for practitioners and contains information sheets and do's and don'ts on various methods trialled.
Read the ECD Method Description
Newsletter 'Meeting of Minds, One Year On'
Who would have thought that Meeting of Minds could make such waves - compelling officials, ethical committees and scientists to take notice; strenghtening democracy by inspiring further deliberations; and boosting the fledgling movement for citizens to take more control of the research agenda?
Publication of the newsletter 'Meeting of Minds, One Year On' coincides with Brain Awareness Week 2007. In the newsletter the King Baudouin Foundation reports on a busy year. On behalf of its partner consortium it describes all that has been done to disseminate the results of Meeting of Minds and to ensure that the citizens' recommendations are being communicated effectively into the policy process.
Read the 8-pages newsletter in English.
Also available in French and Dutch.