Doing the Social in Social License

Abstract

A social license to operate (SLO) is said to result from a complex and sometimes difficult set of negotiations between communities and organizations (NGOs, government, and industry). Each stakeholder group will hold different views about what is important, what is true, and who can or cannot be trusted. This article reviews the contributions made in this special issue on SLO. It also sketches the benefits of applying phronesis, or a practical wisdom-based theorization, of how SLOs can be co-produced.

Keywords:

• License
• Social License to Operate
• Social License

Additional information

Notes on contributors

David Rooney

David Rooney is a professor of Management and Organisational Studies at the Department of Marketing and Management, Macquarie University. His research focuses on understanding the role of wisdom and knowledge in the economy. He has published a number of books including Public Policy in Knowledge-Based Economies, the Handbook on the Knowledge Economy (Vols 1 & 2), Knowledge Policy, and Wisdom and Management in the Knowledge Economy.

Joan Leach

Joan Leach is an associate professor in Rhetoric and Communication and is the deputy head of the School of English, Media Studies and Art History at The University of Queensland. Her research is centered on social epistemology, science communication, the rhetoric of science, and rhetorical theory. She has published in high impact journals such as The Lancet.

Peta Ashworth

Peta Ashworth is a leader of the Science into Society Group at the CSIRO’s Division of Earth Science and Resource Engineering. She is also an adjunct professor for the School of Social Science at The University of Queensland. Her main research interests are focused on how to deliver information and how to facilitate dialogue around complex and contested issues. She has an international reputation in understanding public perceptions of climate change and low emission technologies. She is the co-author of The CSIRO Home Energy Saving Handbook.