Director's Message

LAUREL WELDON

S. Laurel Weldon, Ph.D., Director of PPRI and Distinguished Professor of Political Science

Welcome to Wicked, our effort to share our most recent thinking about solutions to wicked problems. When technology and society are so inextricably intertwined, and central to every global challenge, we need research teams with expertise in both technological and social dimensions- and we have them, here at PPRI. We have lots of new ideas to share about ideas we’ ve come across in our travels both across disciplines and across the country. Look inside for news about regulating drones, housing developments that tread more lightly on the earth (Netzero housing), and the westernization of diets. You also might be interested to hear about our crack team of researchers- fellows and faculty invited to speak on everything from the sustainable development goals (such as food security and gender equality) to artificial intelligence and national security.

I am finding that Discovery Park is an amazingly exciting community of which to be a part, with initiatives like Discovery Park’s Big Idea Challenge sparking ambitious new interdisciplinary projects on everything from sustainable agriculture to helping policymakers make connections between food, energy, and water systems. It’s a great ecosystem for PPRI to be a part of- and with our expertise in the ethical, legal, and social dimensions of so many of the grand challenges that people want to explore, we are finding that we bring new perspectives to the conversations. It’s no wonder our fellows are winning awards- like Undergraduate Policy Fellow Mikaela Meyer, who is the first ever Purdue Undergraduate to win the Truman Award, or Tyler Spence, who won the award for best Postdoctoral research poster at a University-wide competition, or Summer Forester, a new Postdoctoral Fellow just back from a tour as a Fulbright Fellow in Jordan. We are thinking about issues everyone is talking about- like autonomous vehicles and drones- and issues everyone should be talking about- like noise issues at airports or how to address climate change in ways that respect the rights of indigenous peoples.

So turn the page to learn more about the exciting interdisciplinary research on grand challenges that is taking off at Purdue, and how bringing in the ethical, legal, and social dimensions of these issues helps us develop a deeper understanding of these issues. A list of some of the things happening with PPRI are listed on page 22. Be sure to also sign up for email updates and notifications! You can do this from our website. Follow the PPRI blog or find us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay connected for opportunities and innovative discoveries that have the potential to affect policy. And if you are ever down in Discovery Park, drop by and see us. We are keen to learn about extant research on campus, and to help build or support new interdisciplinary collaborations.

Photo Credit: Brian Powell