Control Challenges for Social Systems Milestone Survey: Current Status and Future Vision

Abstract

Control and automation technologies are playing a critical role in the trajectory of human civilisation and its impact upon living systems. Interactions between advances in automation and control and society in it's broadest sense are addressed by IFAC's ‘Social Systems’ Coordinating Committee (CC9) and its five Technical Committees (TCs). CC9 is at the crossroads of several disciplines including business and commerce, pedagogy, international development, urban planning, digital culture amongst many others. This paper reports the results of an envisioning of CC9 and its TCs. It begins with an overview of CC9 and it's TCs. Following a strategic review of CC9 TCs, a qualitative analysis of TC reports is outlined. The findings offer a basis for a strategic agenda for social systems (CC9) in its relationship to other technical areas of IFAC. The analysis highlights potential for cooperation between CC9 communities and thirteen non-CC9 TCs, suggesting ways this might be accomplished.