The Precautionary Principle in Environmental Policy and Public Health
In collaboration with the Center for the History and Ethics of Public Health at the Columbia School of Public Health, the Center will explore the philosophical, moral and scientific challenges posed by the precautionary principle in thinking about environmental and occupational health policy as well as its potential extension to public health more broadly. The goal is to situate the precautionary principle in historical context and to examine its potential and limits as a philosophy of public health attuned to the deepest moral questions, the role of democratic values and practices in shaping public health policy and the role of scientific evidence in shaping public health decision making.