How the Forum on Stakeholder Confidence serves as a platform to build and share knowledge about stakeholder confidence in radioactive waste management

The Forum on Stakeholder Confidence (FSC) was established by the NEA Radioactive Waste Management Committee (RWMC) in 2000, and is first and foremost a learning organisation. The FSC is cataloguing and discussing various new and customary approaches to radioactive waste management, including storage, transport and disposal, through the enhancement of meaningful stakeholder engagement. 'Stakeholder' is defined as anyone with an interest in radioactive waste management decision making. Through the FSC, members seek to improve their role as responsive actors in the regulation and management of radioactive waste, and ultimately, help promote advancements in their home organisations. The FSC fosters learning about stakeholder dialogue and practices ways to develop shared confidence, consent and approval of management solutions. The FSC provides a setting for dialogue exchanges among its interdisciplinary members in an atmosphere of mutual respect and learning. The FSC collaborates with local and national stakeholders to explore issues of common interest, identify best practices, make recommendations and publish reports. The FSC assesses the information it has gained in discussions, develops conclusions, and in co-operation with those concerned, validates the conclusions with the help of academic researchers in order to then publish this learning to have on record. Together, FSC members explore means of ensuring an effective stakeholder dialogue and consider ways to strengthen confidence in decision-making processes