Meridian Institute has developed a Paper to raise awareness about the implications of nanotechnology for poor people, both the potential opportunities and risks.

Ethics and nanotechnology: A basis for action is the fourth position statement issued by Commission de l'éthique de la science et de la technologie in Quebec, Canada. It consists of three chapters devoted to the scientific, legal and ethical implications of nanotechnology. In its ethical assessment of nanotechnology, the Commission is upholding the protection of health and the environment, as well as respect for many values such as dignity, liberty, the integrity of the person, respect for the more...

The Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council's Committee on Technology has released this document identifying environmental, health, and safety (EHS) research and information needs related to understanding and management of potential risks of engineered nanoscale materials.

The International Council on Nanotechnology (ICON) has published this Review of Safety Practices in the Nanotechnology Industry. Prepared by the University of California, Santa Barbara, October 2006. (PDF, 31 pages)

The American Industrial Hygiene Association provides this facet of its website on nanotechnology.

This report proposes a comprehensive Framework for systematically exploring possible risks.

'At the current stage, nanotechnologies affect many areas of law: occupational health and safety, environmental protection, consumer protection, medical law, privacy and civil liberties, intellectual property and patent law. Nonetheless, the analysis of the legal implications of nanotechnologies is just at the beginning. What is particularly needed is an overall view of the principles that can guide the legal approach. This special issue on Regulating Nanotechnologies aims to provide this kind o more...

In this Phase One report, global efforts to document current practices (e.g., 'best practices') and to establish risk assessment frameworks are compiled and summarized. The reviewed efforts are critically evaluated for their approaches, completeness and foci. They are then compared to the efforts planned by the UCSB team for Phase Two of this project, and recommendations are made, where necessary, for the latter.

The Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council's Committee on Technology released a document describing the National Nanotechnology Initiative'€s (NNI) strategy for addressing priority research on the environment, health and safety (EHS) aspects of nanomaterials.

'What explains existing public reactions to nanotechnology, particularly among people
who know little about it? How are public attitudes likely to evolve as people learn more?
The Cultural Cognition Project conducted a study to investigate these questions. The study involved an experimental survey of 1,800 Americans. The study sample, its methods and its results are set forth in the attached paper, “Affect, Values, and Nanotechnology Risk Perceptions: An Experimental Investigation” (“Exp more...