Paris, May 26, 2003
Revisiting Global Public Policies for Sustainable Development

Scientific Coordination. Pascal DELISLE (Alliance Program). with the support of Laurence TUBIANA (IDDRI / Sciences Po, Paris)

Opening of the conference- 9:00-10:00
Introduction by Le Général Gabriel de Nomazy (Directeur Général de l'Ecole Polytechnique)

- Keynote speech: 9:15-10:00: Jeffrey SACHS, Director of the Earth Institute, Columbia University :

Panel 1 – 10:30 - 12:30. Which governance for sustainable development? New actors, new norms

Divides between state actors and civil society, between subgroups of stakeholders as well as policy-makers, or among international organizations and transnational structures weight heavily both the design and the implementation of global governance. This panel will be an introduction to the new actors and the new norms in an era of global governance, and how it impacts the management of sustainable development.

Chair: Pierre-Michel Eisemann (Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne)
Keynote speaker : Laurence Tubiana (IDDRI)

Panelists:
Christine Alfsen-Norodom (Earth Institute, Columbia/Unesco): "North-South partnerships for sustainable development". Dana R. Fisher (Department of Sociology and Earth Institute; Columbia): "Engaging the Disenfranchised: Civil Society Participation in International. Governance for Sustainable Development". Béatrice Pouligny (Sciences Po): "Questioning the historicity of actors and practices: What 'politics' is about in current public policies"

Panel 2- 14 :00-16 :00. Intellectual property rights and international cooperation at the interface of public health and sustainable development

As the WTO is preparing for a new round of negotiations, many question whether the current intellectual property regime is, especially from the perspective of public health, consistent with the exigencies of sustainable development.This is especially the case with the questions of property rights on living genetic material and with the availability of -and access to- pharmaceuticals. To which extent can international cooperation address that particular issue and more generally help poorer countries face the challenges of public health?

Chair: Patrick Messerlin, Sciences Po.

Panelists
Claude Henry (Ecole Polytechnique): "Patents in biomedical research and in public health: a mixed blessing" (abstract). Yves-Antoine Flori (Univesrité de Bordeaux / INSERM) : "International Regulations for drugs to fight AIDS"

Panel 3 –16: 30-18: 30. Addressing emerging environment-related risks: perceptions, precautions and regulations

New categories of environment-related risks are emerging as a result of natural and/or human-led transformations. The potentially adverse effects of changes in rain patterns, the uncontrolled diffusion of GMO technologies are examples of such emerging risks. How should public policy react to these challenges, both in the developing and the developed world? To which extent may domestic and international development policies and priorities be reshaped? The panel will address these questions and identify the areas of research that need to be strengthened as respect, as well as the potential role of universities in helping to inform and prepare future decision makers.

Chair: Keynote speaker: Olivier Godard (Ecole Polytechnique)

READ: "Revisiting the precautionary principle under the light of recent French and international events" (pdf.)

Panelists:

Stephen Connor (School of Public Health, Columbia University): "Climate Variability and Welfare Vulnerability: hazards, risks and resilience in sub-Saharan Africa" (abstract). Christine Noiville. (Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne): "The precautionary principle in recent European case law". Hervé Le Treut (Ecole Polytechnique): "Greenhouse gases and climate change: dealing with uncertainties" (abstract). Kerry Whiteside (Franklin and Marshall College, USA Mass.): "For a Deliberative Interpretation of the Precautionary Principle" (abstract)

November 7 and 8, 2002:

Inaugural Conference of the Alliance Program

Workshop on Innovation in Managing risks under situation of uncertainty (Download the program here)
Columbia University. Dag Hammarsjköld Lounge, 6th Floor, International Affairs Building

November 7

9:00 Introduction to the workshop: Lisa Anderson (SIPA-Columbia), Olivier Borraz (CSO- Sciences Po) and Volker Berghahn (Institute for the Study of Europe, Columbia)

1 st Panel – Concepts In Risk Analysis And Risk Coverage

9:30 – 10:45
● The Impact of Major Catastrophes And Crisis In Thinking About Risk . Patrick Lagadec (Ecole Polytechnique)
● Risk Assesment. Michel Setbon (LEST-CNRS): New Approaches To Risk Evaluation. George Deodatis (Civil Engineering-Columbia): Hazards Risk Assessment for the Civil Infrastructure: NYC Case Study

11:00-12:30
● Risk Coverage Frédéric Morlaye (Commission de Contrôle des Assurances, France): What is an insurable risk ? Erwann Michel-Kerjan (Ecole Polytechnique-Wharton School): Insuring extreme events. Marc Henry (Economics-Columbia ): Decision Making and the Precautionary Principle

● Managing Risks in Democratic Societies
David Capitant (Paris 1): Risk And French Administrative Case Law

2 nd Panel – After September 11: Recovery And Response

2:00-3:15
● Interdependent Security Problems and Terrorism Insurance. Geoffrey Heal (Columbia Business School). Howard Kunreuther (University of Pennsylvania): You can Only Die on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events

3:30-5:00
● After September 11th: Recovery and Response. David Stark (COI-Columbia): Recovery as Innovation. Response and Redevelopment in Lower Manhattan. Elliot Sclar (Urban Planning Program- Columbia). Chris Jones (Director of Economic Programs, Regional Plan Association). Benjamin Lane (CUBES – Biosphere and Diversity – Columbia University). Discussant:. Michel Dobry (Paris 1) and Nancy Degnan (SIPA-Columbia)

November 8 th

3 nd Panel – After The BSE Crisis: Organizing Health And Safety Issues

9:30-10:45
● The Role, Functioning and Impact of the New Independent Agency Evaluating Risks in France (AFSSA) . Christophe Clergeau (INSA-Sciences Po) .Julien Besançon (Sciences Po)

● The Food Standards Agency in England and its Impact on the Food-Safety Regulation Regime . Henry Rothstein(CARR-LSE): The Impact of Contemporary Reforms on The UK Food Safety Regime. Discussant :. David Vogel (University of Berkeley)

10:45-12:00
● The Precautionary Principle . Christine Noiville (Paris 1): The precautionary principle in legal perspectives.George Bermann (School of Law - Columbia) Discussant : Joanne Scott (School of Law, Columbia)

4 th Panel – Risk Related To Natural Hazards And Short-Term Climate Change

1:15-3:45

● A Disaster-Risk Study of Caracas
Art Lerner-Lam (Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory – Columbia University) : How to combine the social and economic characteristics of the city and its decision making processes with climatic hazards, in order to promote an integrated process of risk assessment
● Risk And Reliability For Structural Systems Within The General Civil Infrastructure. Andrew Smyth (Civil Engineering, Columbia): A cost benefit analysis on seismic retrofitting measures for deciding on the level of risk mitigation within an uncertain environment.
● Lessons from the the Canadian Ice Storm and the French 1999 Tempest
Patrick Lagadec (Ecole Polytechnique): W hat have we learned from these two catastrophes in terms of predictive measures and post-disaster operations on the one hand, in terms of the role of scientific expertise on the other?

4:00-5:00 Wrap-Up Session