CATAPULT at RICOMET 2026 in Prague

CATAPULT members Tanja Perko, Jonathan Reese and Meritxell Martell participated in the RICOMET 2026 Conference, held at the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague from 23 to 25 September 2026.

RICOMET is an annual meeting point for social sciences and humanities (SSH) communities engaging critically and constructively with issues related to ionising radiation across different domains, technologies and societal contexts. This year’s conference, under the theme “Reflecting on Nuclear Renaissance in a Changing World”, explored how SSH research can illuminate, question and inform the transformations associated with renewed interest in nuclear energy.

RICOMET 2026 brought together around 50 participants from a diverse range of organisations, including universities, research organisations, regulatory authorities, implementers and consultancies.

Jonathan Reese presented insights from interviews conducted with experts and non-expert participants in Belgium and Portugal, exploring how meaningful participation can be achieved in Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) processes for Small Modular Reactor (SMR) projects. The findings highlighted key factors that can support more inclusive and effective stakeholder and public engagement and provided valuable insights for CATAPULT’s ongoing work on participation in EIA.

Tanja Perko and Meritxell Martell facilitated an interactive workshop exploring how participatory approaches could enhance social learning within EIA processes for SMRs. Working in groups, participants developed creative proposals for participatory activities that could be integrated into different stages of EIA and go beyond the typical consultation in EIA processes. The discussions showed that there is considerable scope to further explore how participation can go beyond consultation, creating opportunities for mutual learning among project developers, authorities, experts, stakeholders and members of the public.

As new nuclear projects develop, understanding how participation can foster social learning, inform decision-making and potentially contribute to meaningful change will be an important area for further research and practice.

Finally, the CATAPULT poster “Comprehensive Assessment and Preparedness for Emerging Nuclear Technologies through Public Engagement in Environmental Impact Assessment for Small Modular Reactors” was presented during the conference poster session.

RICOMET 2026 provided an excellent opportunity to share CATAPULT’s ongoing work, receive feedback from the SSH community and exchange perspectives on how meaningful public participation can contribute to the assessment and governance of emerging nuclear technologies.