Portrait Laura Draetta
Laura DraettaAssociate Professor

Repères biographiquesShort Biography

Professional Appointments

  • 2005–present: Associate Professor, Environmental Sociology, Télécom Paris
  • 2019–present:  Co-Chair of the RD-ID (Responsibility for Digital Identity) Research Center, Télécom Paris
  • 2020-present: Research Fellow, University of California Berkeley, CSTMS, FBF Award
  • 2015 and 2019: Visiting Scholar, University of California Berkeley, CSTMS, Office for the History of Science and Technology, Berkeley Program in Science and Technology Studies

Education

  • PhD, Sociology, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS), Paris
  • M.A, Social Science, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS), Paris
  • M.Sc, Environmental Science, University of Liège, Belgium
  • B.A. Political Science, Università di Milano, Milan, Italy

Interests

  • Interconnections between Technology-Environment-Publics in making innovation with a disciplinary approach combining Environmental Sociology and Science & Technology Studies (STS)

Service

  • Ethics Expert, European Commission: H2020 and Marie Sklodowska-Curie Programs
  • Referee for ANSES (The French National Agency for Health & Safety); ANR (The French National Research Agency)
  • Ad hoc reviewer for Oxford University Press (publisher), Routledge (publisher); Annals of Telecommunications (journal) and VertigO (journal)
  • Former Elected Board member, AISLF, RC Sociology of Science & Technological Innovation (2008–2012)

Grants and Awards

  • 1997-2003:   PhD Grant, the Regional Council of Sardinia (I)
  • 2011:   Award for Research in Digital Green Growth, MEDEF-ADEME-Ministry of Environment (F)
  • 2020:   France-Berkeley Fund Award, University of California Berkeley & the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Activités : enseignement, recherche, projetsActivities : Teaching, Research, Projects

Research

My research lies at the intersection of Environmental Sociology and Science & Technology Studies. I am interested in the processes of confrontation that associate – and oppose – Technology, the Environment and Publics in making innovation. Since 2007, I have been leading research projects on environmental practices around digital technology, the uses of emerging technologies and their environmental and health impact, as well as on socio-technical controversies and public protests related to digital innovation (RFID, Smart Meters , Facial Recognition, 5G). 

Ongoing Research Projects

RESCOMPTE – Smart Meters for Electricity and Social Reception. Controversies and Ecological Performativity. Longitudinal and ethnographic study of social dynamics relating to the deployment and appropriation of smart meters in France and abroad. Comparative analysis on France, Italy, California and Canada. Partners: Télécom ParisTech (F), University of Padua (I), CSTB (F). Funded by ADEME (F), 2017-2019 (director).

EXPO-ENFANTS – Characterization of use, sociological determinants and radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields exposure from RF emitting devices in children at different ages. International and interdisciplinary project aiming to produce new knowledge, usable for future epidemiologic studies of possible health effects of RF and for the elaboration of public health management policies in the field of RF and health. By including a sociological component, the project allows the identification of factors which could lead to exposure reduction in young people. Partners: ISGlobal (S), Télécom Paris (F), Utrecht University (NL), Université de Rennes (F), INSERM (F), Gant University (B). Funded by ANSES (F), 2020-2023 (responsible for the sociological part).

The Emergence of Public Controversies in Science, Technology & Medicine: A New Methodological Paradigm. Empirical study of public controversies regarding science, technology and medicine. Focusing on emblematic case studies in environmental ethics (pesticides), bioethics (vaccines), data ethics (facial recognition) and innovation ethics (smart meters), the study aims to develop an integrated methodological paradigm for analyzing public controversies regarding science, technology and medicine and theorizing the role of the the media, scientific community and government policy in determining the course and outcome of such controversies. Partners: Télécom Paris (F), CSTMS UC Berkeley (USA), 2020-2022 (co-director).