In the intricate interplay between science, society, and politics, the role of political parties in shaping scientific inquiry remains an underexplored terrain. A groundbreaking article published in Isis delves into this dynamic through a critical examination of the Italian Communist Party’s (Partito Comunista Italiano, PCI) engagement with science and technology from the 1960s through the 1980s. This study offers a nuanced understanding of how a political organization can mediate scientific discourse and influence technological progress within the broader contexts of industrial transformation and global geopolitics.
In the aftermath of World War II, the PCI’s leadership predominantly comprised intellectuals from the humanities and social sciences, who initially perceived science largely through a cultural lens, rather than as a strategic site of political and economic contestation. This approach was partly shaped by the Fascist period’s politicization of science, which had engendered a cautious academic climate that discouraged scientists from engaging in political struggles. However, the rapid industrial and technological shifts at the dawn of the 1960s mandated a reevaluation of these attitudes within the party.
The 1960s and 1970s constituted a pivotal period marked by accelerating automation in Italian industries, which profoundly altered labor relations by diminishing workers’ autonomy and suppressing wage growth. Concurrently, the intense rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union manifested in the space race, tethering scientific research inexorably to military objectives and national prestige. Against this backdrop of technological enthusiasm and geopolitical tension, the ecological consequences of unbridled economic expansion began to emerge starkly—a challenge eloquently articulated by Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi at the 1972 UN Conference in Stockholm, who cautioned against halting industrialization in the Global South, warning it might perpetuate structural poverty.
The PCI’s internal forums evolved into vibrant arenas where senior and junior scientists, policymakers, politicians, technicians, and workers engaged in robust debates on the social role of science. Notably, despite its hierarchical organization, the party fostered pluralistic discussions that addressed the prevailing conception that science is never neutral. This emergent consensus articulated that the environmental degradation, militarization of research, and suppression of labor agency were not consequences of objective scientific development, but rather the results of science shaped by military priorities and consumer capitalism.
This critique of “neutral” science gained political expression through party leader Enrico Berlinguer’s advocacy for an “austerity policy,” which sought to reposition workers at the center of production processes and promote an equitable, non-colonial relationship with countries in the Global South. This policy was a concrete attempt to link scientific practice with radical political aims, reflecting the PCI’s commitment to reconfiguring science not merely as a technical endeavor but as a domain deeply embedded in social struggle and global justice.
The 1970s energy crisis catalyzed further tensions within the PCI, especially regarding the adoption of nuclear power technologies. While nuclear energy appeared to promise a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels and reduce dependence on resource extraction from less developed countries, the associated risks of radioactive contamination and the militarization required for nuclear oversight posed complex ethical and political dilemmas. Critics within the party feared the emergence of an “atomic state,” akin to the United States’ postwar militarized scientific-industrial complex, which could exacerbate social control and militarization within Italian society.
As the international political order shifted dramatically in the 1980s with the ascendancy of neoliberalism and the decline of Soviet influence, the PCI underwent ideological transformation, renouncing communism and adopting a social-democratic orientation accompanied by a change of name. This ideological realignment paralleled a broader relegation of radical critiques of science and technology to the margins. Nevertheless, the archival record of the PCI’s vigorous internal debates illuminates the critical role political parties play as crucibles for contesting and redefining scientific paradigms and their societal implications.
This research reveals how the PCI situated science within the persistent global structures of inequality and conflict, aligning itself with contemporary movements in the history of science that seek to recover overlooked contributions and perspectives. The party’s reflections challenge the prevailing narratives presenting science as a detached, apolitical enterprise, instead emphasizing the political contingent nature of scientific knowledge production and application.
Moreover, this case study underscores the importance of understanding scientific development as embedded within political economies and ideological struggles. The PCI’s debates highlight the multiplicity of scientific imaginaries circulating within a single political entity—ranging from technocratic optimism to critical skepticism of militarism and environmental damage—demonstrating that science, far from monolithic, is contested terrain shaped by competing visions of progress and justice.
By analyzing archival documents, party publications, and the interventions of key scientific figures within the PCI, the article elucidates how political engagement with science can serve as a lever for broader social transformation. It also exemplifies how political institutions can foster spaces of deliberation where scientific knowledge is critically interrogated alongside socioeconomic goals, thereby providing an alternative model to technocratic or market-driven science governance.
These historical insights bear significant relevance for contemporary debates on the governance of science and technology, particularly in an era marked by climate crises, digital surveillance, and rising geopolitical tensions. The PCI’s case invites reflection on how political parties today might reclaim a proactive role in shaping scientific agendas oriented towards social equity and ecological sustainability.
Ultimately, the article contributes an essential corrective to the dominant historiographies of science, challenging narratives that isolate scientific developments from their political contexts. By situating the PCI’s scientific elaborations within broader historical processes—from postwar reconstruction and Cold War competition to decolonization and neoliberal restructuring—it foregrounds the indelible imprint of political ideology on the trajectories of science and technology.
This comprehensive investigation not only enriches our understanding of Italy’s political history but also advances a globally pertinent discourse on the production of scientific knowledge as a fundamentally political act. It invites scholars, policymakers, and practitioners to reconsider the potential and responsibility of political parties as active agents in shaping scientific futures that are just, democratic, and attuned to planetary limits.
Subject of Research: The political role of the Italian Communist Party in shaping science and technology policies from the 1960s to the 1980s
Article Title: The Political Elaboration on Science and Technology of the Italian Communist Party Between the 1960s and the 1980s
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Keywords: Communism, Science history, Political science, Sociopolitical systems, Social studies of science
