Taming uncertainty: the WRR approach to risk governance

In the past decade, Renn and others have drawn up classifications of the various types of risk problems. In these taxonomies, degree of incertitude serves as a main distinguishing mark. However, because risk problems may migrate between different categories, these classifications provide unreliable guides for policy-makers. This paper argues that this flaw points to a deeper issue, viz. the dynamic relations between uncertainty and risk. An approach to risk governance developed within the WRR, a Dutch government think tank, addresses these issues. The paper discusses the conceptual and normative basis of the WRR approach and a number of its institutional and legislative consequences.