Report from the participatory workshops on social dimensions and sustainability assessments of nuclear energy

This document collects reports of five international workshops organised as part of the Project “Economic and Social Considerations for the Future of Nuclear Energy in Society” (ECOSENS).
The ECOSENS project (October 2022 – September 2025) overall aim was to create a neutral space where researchers in social sciences and humanities (including economics, sociology, Science and Technology Studies, … among others) and in nuclear energy research and policy could meet, exchange views and collaborate with civil society and other relevant stakeholders in order to:
■ develop a societal perspective on the development and use of existing and new nuclear technologies, in the context of major societal challenges: climate crisis, sustainable development and energy security, by opening up the technoscientific issues to the social, political, cultural and ethical context, in order to guide policies in the nuclear field; (work package 1)
■ research an assessment of nuclear energy sustainability considering the entire life cycle of the current nuclear technologies, possible evolutions of the energy markets and nuclear technologies in the transition toward climate neutrality, and the societal perspective in order to reveal and evaluate the possible roles of nuclear power in the future; (work package 2)
■ research and develop a new economic model, based on the System of Provision (SoP), for the assessment of nuclear energy, overcoming the key weaknesses of existing economic models, providing a suite of indicators relevant not just for the investors (e.g. equity holders) but for a broad variety of stakeholders (e.g. consumers, governments, suppliers); (work package 3)
The research on the societal aspects of energy futures conducted in ECOSENS provided insights into the perceived risks, benefits and potentials of nuclear energy technologies, which were further deepened through studies on citizens’ motivations for engaging with the issue in the context of major societal challenges (climate crisis, sustainable energy policies, energy security). Furthermore, the research identified challenges for the uptake of existing
recommendations on stakeholder engagement and transdisciplinarity (notably integration of social sciences and humanities) in nuclear research and policy, and developed practical recommendations for these challenges. Last but not least, the international workshops gathered relevant societal stakeholders to explore and co-construct ‘possible futures for nuclear energy’ taking into account ongoing energy transitions and climate change and other major societal challenges.
All information on, and reports of, the ECOSENS project can be found on the project website https://ecosens-project.eu/