Research

Axis 1

Sonia Ben Slimane coordinates with Emmanuel Frémiot a prospective review of the dissemination of knowledge and technology transfer opportunities of the LABEX partners for the ecodesign of new nano-based products. The project is fully aligned with  OECD recommendations for smart specialisation.

Another part of the research connects directly to the LABEX PRA 1-2 : Innovation management and sustainability strategies. The development of nanotechnologies is trans-sectorial, transnational and high-potential-high-risk. This has direct consequences on governance and policymaking. In turn, policymakers face the fact that those who launch new nano-based business activities seek frameworks that will allow them to balance risks and potential returns on a global market. The main objective of this task is to determine how the ‘safe by design’ method can be applied to management in order to foster sustainability for the technology. To do so, research focuses on the interrelations between policymaking and the development of new business activities based on nanoproducts, and more particularly on the two following domains : 
a) what are the effects of regulatory voids and loopholes ? 
b) What are the roles of firms in the design of regulatory tools like standards or voluntary codes of conducts ? 
By working in close collaboration with the other partners, and particularly with the industrial partners the PRA 1-2 researchers carry out a systematic analysis of potential bottlenecks and, conversely, of good practices likely to foster sustainability. 
One objective of this work is to contribute to better knowledge of the impacts of the ‘safe by design’ method on the value chain, as this would correspond to an important building block in the creation of a new paradigm. Claire Auplat has worked on the interface between policy and management in nanotechnologies for years and she has developed a strong collaborative network of research on this topic both with industry and with other academic partners in France, the UK (Imperial College Business School) and the US (UCLA).

Source: Sonia Ben Slimane, 2013