Much, though not all, of this work that revolves around the precautionary principle carries the name “precautionary.” Tracking the use of the term “precautionary principle” or “precautionary approach” reflects the way this idea has radiated out into the world in the past 10 years. The boxes on pages 2 and 4 are a sampling of what people have said about the precautionary principle in the past year and how they are using it. These definitions and applications of the precautionary principle bear the stamp of SEHN and the 1998 Wingspread conference--shifting the burden of proof, examining alternatives, and acting on what we know despite lingering uncertainties. These have become the standard vocabulary of precaution. What was once an obscure principle of international law is now common parlance and a ready tool of policy and persuasion.

But our work is not done. SEHN’s activities and accomplishments of the last year confirm our sense over the past decade that the precautionary principle could be the basis for a major shift in our environmental policies. We could not have imagined, however, how far that change would reach into law, economics, science, and culture.