Conference 'Risk and Uncertainty in Societal Transformations'

Date: 8-9 September 2025

Location: University of Luxembourg, Esch/Alzette, Campus Belval, Maison du Savoir.

In an era defined by unprecedented challenges and rapid societal transformations, understanding and addressing risk and uncertainty has never been more critical. This conference brings together thought leaders, researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to explore how societies can navigate complex, interrelated risks while fostering resilience and sustainable development.

The interplay of global challenges—ranging from climate and energy crises to cyber threats, geopolitical shifts, and the sustainability of essential systems such as finance, agriculture, and space—demands innovative methodologies, interdisciplinary dialogue, and actionable solutions. By engaging with these pressing issues, we aim to deepen our understanding of the vulnerabilities and inequities that shape risk landscapes and co-create pathways for equitable and sustainable futures. 

Registration

The registration fee amounts to 30 euro. Registration can be done here:  Registration page 

Programme

Monday 8th September

11:00 - 12:00 | Registration and Coffee

12:00 - 12:10 | Welcome Address

12:10 - 12:15 | Welcome Address SRA-E Benelux - Catherine Wong

12:15 - 13:00 | Keynote 1: “Spatial Imaginaries and the Social Geographies of Low-Carbon Transitions” - Patrick Devine Wright

13:00 - 13:15 | Coffee Break

13:15 - 14:00 | Panel Discussion 1:  Risk and Public Acceptance of New Technologies - Patrick Devine Wright, Rose Facchini, Sabrina Alam

14:00 - 15:00 | Lunch and poster Session

15:00 - 16:00 | Parallel Session 1

16:00 - 16:15 | Coffee Break

16:15 - 17:15 | Parallel Session 2

Tuesday 9th September

08:30 - 09:15 | Arrival and Coffee

09:15 - 10:00 | Keynote 2: “Bridging the Risk Gap: Ground-Truth Intelligence for Adaptive Cybersecurity in a Precarious Technological Era” - Alexandre Dulaunoy

10:00 - 11:00 | Parallel Session 3

11:00 - 11:15 | Coffee Break

11:15 - 12:00 | Panel Discussion 2: Risk vs hazards: a conceptual cloud on the future of risk analysis? - Ragnar Löfstedt, Frederic Bouder, Tom Jansen, Rob Smal, Stephanie Hurst

12:00 - 13:00 | Lunch and poster Session

13:00 - 14:00 | Parallel Session 4

14:00 - 14:15 | Closing Address 

14:15 - 15:15 | Drinks and Networking

Keynote and panel speakers

• Alexandre Dulaunoy. Head of CIRCL - Computer Incident Response Center Luxembourg
• Patrick Devine-Wright. Professor at the University of Exeter and head of ACCESS - Advancing Capacity for Climate and Environment Social Science (https://accessnetwork.uk).
• Sabrina Alam. KPMG. Director in the Sustainability Advisory Practice at KPMG Luxembourg.
• Rose Facchini. Lecturer at Tufts University, Massachusetts.
• Patrick Devine-Wright. Professor at the University of Exeter.
• Ragnar Löfstedt. Professor of Risk Management at King's College London.
• Frederic Bouder. Professor of Risk Management at the University of Stavanger, Norway.
• Tom Jansen. Risk, decision making and communication scientist, Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, The Netherlands. 
• Rob Smal. Policy maker at the Ministery of Climate Policy and Green Growth, The Netherlands.
• Stephanie Hurst, Thüringen federal state government, Germany

Parallel Sessions

Parallel Session 1.1: Risk and Reflexivity in Sustainability Transitions

Chair: Kate Jones

• Security perspectives in circular transformation (E. Petelin) 

• Risk-aware trainings for territorial governance in the Greater Region: cross-border planning games and soil walks (T. Becker)

Parallel Session 1.2: Risk Perceptions and Protective Actions

Chair: Alexander Skinner

• From Chilling to Freely Chatting: Promoting Privacy-Protective Actions Without Inhibiting Natural Behavior at Home Among Smart Speaker Users (B. Steenbreker)

• Are trust in the manufacturer, nothing to hide beliefs, and perceived benefits undermining privacy risk perception and protective action in relation to smart speakers? (N. Huijts)

• Young people’s risk perceptions of mental health issues as predictor of information seeking on climate change and health (F. Hilverda) 

Parallel Session 2.1: Risks in the Renewable Energy Transition

Chair Tom Becker

• Can Coloured PV Reduce Rural Discontent? Addressing Perceived Risks Of Large Scale Solar Projects (A. Skinner)

• The potential digital risks of integrated energy systems: A sociotechnical perspective (A. Mahzouni)

Parallel Session 2.2: Navigating Risk Perceptions

Chair: Angelo Imperiale

• Risk perception and preventive behaviors regarding occupational exposure to hazardous substances: a scoping review (E. Lindhout)

• Can Participatory Foresight Align Risk Perceptions? An Experimental Study. (C. Wong)

• Algorithm Perception When Using Threat Intelligence in Vulnerability Risk Assessment (S. van Gerwen)

Parallel Session 3.1: Assessing Risks In A Digital And Transforming World

Chair: Nicole Huijts

• Mapping the Interdependencies of Carbon, Energy, and Industry Through CBAM and SDGs (D. Peyerl)

• The Risk Of Overlooking the Evaluation Of System-level Robustness in Aviation (E. Mezzi)

• The Use of AI to Model Human Perceptions of Homeland Security Risks (R. Lundberg)

Parallel Session 3.2: Climate Risks and Societal Responses

Chair: Femke Hilverda

• Risk-Informed and Participatory Climate Adaptation in the Katari River Basin, Bolivia (A. Agramon Akiyama)

• Ecological Grief within Indigenous Communities: Voices from the Global South. (C. Cervantes Benavides)

• Critical Transitions in Regional Economic Dynamics Induced by Sea Level Rise (J. Akkerman)

Parallel Session 4.1: Risk, Resilience, and Justice in Climate Transitions

Chair: Catherine Wong

• Mediating Risk: Conflict Management for a Just and Resilient Green Transition (M. Vanhullebusch)

• Social influence and norms as levers for transformational household adaptation to climate risks (T. Wagenblast)

• Undeserving in the Anthropocene: Healthcare, Borders, and the Climate Crisis in Europe (J. de Freitas Sampaio)

Parallel Session 4.2: Risk Perceptions: Navigating Food Futures and Health Concerns

Chair: Eva Lindhout

• Information or Indoctrination: The use of Information Interventions in Risk Surveys (F. Bergen) 

• Public Reception of Novel Foods and New Food Technologies: Literary Reflections in Contemporary Italian Speculative Fiction (R. Facchini)

• Tomatoes vs Technocrats: Analyzing propaganda as malware to uncover the risk construction in digital politics that weaponizes food futures. (C. Fillioux)

Call for abstracts

The Society for Risk Analysis-Europe Benelux Chapter invites all contributions related to risk, e.g., risk analysis, risk management, risk governance, risk ethics, risk perception, and risk communication. We particularly welcome contributions that focus on risk perception in relation to societal transformations and technological innovation systems. Contributions from other domains are also welcome.

Relevant topics include, but are not limited to:

• Interplay of Poverty, Inequality, and Vulnerability to Risk                      
• Geopolitics                     
• Migration & Borders                           
• Climate and Energy Risks                           
• Risk methodologies and policy assessment                             
• Sustainable Finance                          
• Space Sustainability                          
• Cybersecurity and digital risks                    
• Food and Agriculture: Navigating Risks for a Sustainable Future
• Resilience and sustainability transformation               

Abstracts (max. 500 words or 1 page, single spaced, 12 pt, Times New Roman) and queries should be submitted to sra.e.benelux(at)gmail.com. Don't forget to add all authors names and affiliations with the abstract. 

Dates

Abstract submission deadline: 31 May 2025, extended to 12 June 2025. 
Notification of acceptance: 27 June 2025, extended to 3 July 2025.
Abstract submission deadline for posters: 18 July 2025, extended to 29 August 2025
Notification of acceptance of posters: 31 July 2025, extended to 2 September 2025
Registration deadline for presenters in parallel sessions: 8 August 2025
Registration deadline for all who participants (including poster presenters): 22 August 2025, extended to 2 September 2025

Registration

The registration fee amounts to 30 euro. Registration can be done here:  Registration page 

Travel and accommodation information

Here are some hotels near the university for you to choose from. 

• Ibis Esch Belval
• Residhome
• Hotel de la poste

Otherwise, you can easily choose a hotel in Luxembourg city centre and take the free public transport to the university. 

Trains from Luxembourg Gare to Belval depart every 30 minutes and the whole journey takes around 40 minutes. Buses are also available from Luxembourg Gare but take a little longer (1 hour).

Use this website to plan your journey: https://www.mobiliteit.lu/en/plan-a-trip/

If you have any queries please email us at sra.e.benelux(at)gmail.com

For more information, follow us also on: LinkedIn.