Review of engagement activities to promote awareness of radiation and its associated risk amongst the Japanese public before and after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident

Following the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in 2011, many radiation experts
directly experienced a vast gap between ideal and real public understanding (PU) of radiation in
risk communication. Therefore, this study collated and reviewed information about PU activities for
radiation and its risk that six Japanese academic societies —which seem to be socially neutral expert
communities —related to radiation and radiation risk conducted before and after the accident.
Activities these radiation-related societies provided to the general public were discussed from the
following perspectives: (a) difficulties in two-way communication due to resources, motivation and
public interest and concerns; (b) balance between academic research and PU activities; (c) academic
societies ’ building trust with the public while ensuring member experts’ neutrality and
independence; and (d) discussions among academic societies to prepare for public engagement. We hope
that this paper encou...

Source: Journal of Radiological Protection - November 24, 2021 Category: Physics Authors: Akihiro Sakoda, Naoki Nomura, Yujiro Kuroda, Takahiko Kono, Wataru Naito and Hiroko Yoshida Source Type: research