Chapter 7 of the book is dedicated to Prof. Jos Malda, a world leading biotechnologist based in the Netherlands.

The Laboratory

Prof. Jos Malda heads a research group that focuses on biofabrication and biomaterials design, in particular for the regeneration of (osteo) chondral defects. The team is investigating regenerative means for repairing damaged joints in humans and animals, with particular interest in the knee. The team works alongside and within both the medical and veterinary facilities at Utrecht University, studying wear on both animal and human joints and have designed and built a production facility that allows for the 3D printing of living cells to make live repair implants that can be surgically implanted.

The chapter recounts the work from Malda’s perspective. He has long been involved with responsible innovation and its practices, and trains all of his team in ethics.

The chapter takes the model and issues addressed in the furniture restoration workshop and compares them to the laboratory and the narrative that Malda offers through recorded interviews.

The use of tools and the layout of the laboratory is compared, with the use of skilled visions and similarities in problem solving techniques also highlighted. The comparative shows how research in the lab can be seen as following similar lines of development to those in the workshop. The use of different generations of tools, based on a nuanced understanding of their capabilities and possibilities, the practice of building tools for specific uses, the application of techniques from other fields in problem solving and the view of the finished product within its lifespan (an implant seen not as a finished product but as something has to grow and survive wear, very much as the restorer sees the choice of materials and techniques used in the workshop).

Malda’s own Words

The second half of the chapter (like those previous) offers an interview transcription with Prof. Malda himself. He describes the reaction to his laboratory producing a 3D printed skull that was fitted to a young woman, delving into the problem of expectations for future medical treatment, the printing of organs and the thin line between repair and enhancement.

Malda narrates the network capacity necessary for such work, reflecting the furniture restoration experience from the previous chapter, the value of teamwork (ditto) his visions and aims and financial value of his work for the university. He describes his push towards standardization which leads him on to EU funding and finally protocols, which leads us to the very point of the book and this series: Some are international but others are internally created within the project!

This brings us back to the conversation with the furniture restorer. The protocols that are created within Malda’s project reflect the philosophies and goals and aims and personal beliefs of the team. Just as the restorer carries out unseen work, reflecting the workshop philosophy (workshop protocol), the scientists also share an understanding, and it is one which they themselves create. Both teamleaders are striving for the right way of proceeding, within their own set of beliefs that is constructed through their networks. They are both using a set of tools, many of which they have constructed themselves, and they both see their work within a broader and longer term view.

To link part 5 and part 6 of this series together, today we will take a look at two responsible innovation projects that were funded by the European Union (part 4) and have an Italian connection (part 5). Both projects were funded under the Horizon 2020 call, (2013 – 2020), while the book chapter offers descriptions of projects funded and completed in the previous (FP7) calls (from p.70). These newer projects build upon the experiences and results of those that went before.

See my previous post here for an overview of the EU vision on research and innovation.

SMART-Map

SMART-map (RoadMAPs to Societal Mobilisation for the Advancement of Responsible Industrial Technologies) was financed by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 Programme.

From the website we learn that its goal was to define and implement concrete roadmaps for the responsible development of technologies and services in three key game-changing fields: precision medicine, synthetic biology and 3D printing in biomedicine.

Synthetic biology is an emerging science that could be extensively employed in industries. Some governments are already pushing for its employability but these new technologies bring about controversial impacts that could influence or violate existing normative values.

Precision medicinehas been growing in the last few years and is still expected to grow extensively. It allows people to map their genome not only to understand their genetic history but also to infer their disease risk profile. This is attractive to citizens as well as to industries that are hence investing always more in this field.

3D printing consists in producing 3D objects by superimposing layers of chosen materials. It is thought by some to be a revolution in the manufacturing industry because the objects resulting from 3D printing can meet the customers’ needs accurately. 3D printing has been also being employed in the biomedical field but it is already facing tremendous societal challenges.

The project aimed to develop a new format for open and collaborative dialogues between industry and societal actors (Industrial Dialogues) allowing the co-design of a tool (a SMART Map) that could help companies to address the questions of social and environmental responsibility they face in their innovation processes. The project tested these SMART Maps in actual industrial settings, ensuring that innovators can use them easily within their existing

The project produced industrial dialogue and materials alongside an E-book, a series of recommendations and the final road-maps. As with all projects all of these materials are made freely available to potential users.

ROSIE

The ROSIE project aimed to improve skills among entrepreneurs and innovation actors to promote responsible innovation in companies based in Central European countries where a lack knowledge, skills and policy frameworks to encourage responsible innovation may slow its developments. In order to address these issues the project developed and tested tools and training methods whose aim was to improve capacity to implement innovation responsibly.

This project grouped together various public administration and governance bodies with Chambers of Commerce and commercial and not for profit organizations from Crotatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Germany and Italy.

The project has a workbox website that includes introductory videos to responsible innovation, self-assessment tools, implementation plan and toolkit, consultancy and training materials. The workbox website also contains a series of training videos that address such issues as the setting up and running of a living lab and how the STIR methodology can be used to raise awareness and promote change in business.

The video I made that you can watch in part 2 of this series was produced for this project with the Bassetti Foundation playing roles in both.