Reframing Project Governance in Long-Term Scientific Infrastructures: A Four-Pillar Framework for Knowledge Management and Human-Factor Risk Mitigation

Large-scale scientific and nuclear infrastructures operate over multi-decade lifecycles, often spanning several generations of personnel. Their long-term sustainability depends not only on technical robustness and regulatory compliance, but also on the capacity of project governance and management systems to preserve critical knowledge, mitigate human-factor risks, and maintain organizational continuity. While advances in systems engineering have significantly improved technical reliability, human and organizational factors remain major sources of project risk [ 22 , 42 ]. Conventional project governance approaches may insufficiently address the progressive loss of tacit knowledge, generational discontinuities, barriers to knowledge sharing, and the undervaluation of intellectual capital. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative research conducted among professionals in the nuclear sector [ 5 ] alongside established literature on project governance, Knowledge Management, psychological safety, and organizational resilience, this article proposes a Four-Pillar Governance Framework for Project Management in Long-Term Scientific Infrastructures. The framework integrates four complementary and interdependent dimensions: (1) Systematic Knowledge Retention, through critical knowledge identification, mentoring, coaching, and succession planning; (2) Psychological Safety Infrastructure, fostering open communication, knowledge sharing, and the reporting of concerns and lessons learned; (3) Generational and Diversity Bridging, supporting intergenerational collaboration and cognitive diversity; and (4) Management Involvement, embedding leadership commitment, resource allocation, and Knowledge Management into organizational strategy and governance structures. The article examines how workforce ageing and retirement, generational gaps, the underrepresentation of women and cognitive diversity in STEM environments, the externalization of competencies without systematic knowledge capture, and the undervaluation of intellectual capital create interconnected challenges for project governance and the management of knowledge and people. The empirical findings highlight a gap between the perceived importance of Knowledge Management and its effective implementation, with workload pressures, limited time, and insufficient management support emerging as significant barriers. By translating these challenges into four interdependent governance dimensions, the proposed framework extends the focus of Project Management beyond technical delivery, cost, schedule, and compliance to incorporate knowledge continuity and human-factor risk into governance across the operational lifecycle. It offers a conceptual and practice-oriented contribution to strengthening decision-making, organizational resilience, and the long-term sustainability of complex scientific infrastructures. Further validation through comparative case studies and longitudinal research is required.