Past News

Past news (prior to 2017)

Past News items
Jennifer Kuzma was appointed as a member of the World Economic Forum's Global Council on The Future of Technology, Values, and Policy. The council consists of thought leaders from business, government, civil society and academia and will focus on how values for the global public interest can be embedded in technological systems and how agile governance mechanisms can be constituted and implemented to address the regulatory issues surrounding emerging technologies. Its inaugural meeting will take place in Dubai UAE November 13-14th, 2016 at the WEF's Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils. Selected members from the council also attend the WEF's Annual Meeting 2017 in Davos Switzerland. Read more
FDA approves genetically modified mosquitoes for release in Florida The FDA gave it's support for a biotech company, Oxitech, to release thousands of male Aedes Aegypti in the Florida Keys in an effort to stop the spread of the many diseases the species carries, such as zika and dengue. Read more
GES faculty featured in Bay Nature Magazine An article in the July-September issue of Bay Nature Magazine, 'Re-Coding for Conservation,' covers a range of topics, including CRISPR and GM chestnuts. It also includes quotes by John Godwin and questions on island rodents raised by Godwin and Matthew Booker. Read the full article Read more
Jennifer Kuzma serving on new NRC committee The committee is called "Future Biotechnology Products and Opportunities to Enhance Capabilities of the Biotechnology Regulatory System." They held a public meeting on June 1st & 2nd at the National Academy of Sciences building in Washington, DC. You can view the archived webcast. Learn more
Press Coverage on GMO Report Several online news outlets have published articles on a report released by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on the safety of GMO's. Fred Gould spoke on behalf of the committee and provided commentary on the report which you can read about in the articles. The various articles present the findings of the report in very different ways. Take a look at each news article and compare the coverage of this report. NY Times - 'Genetically Engineered Crops Are Safe, Analysis Finds' NBC News - 'Genetically Modified Crops Are Safe, Report Says' NPR - 'GMOs Are Safe, But Don't Always Deliver On Promises, Top Scientists Say' The Atlantic - 'The Fading Meaning of 'GMO'' Here's Where the Science on GMO's Stands 5 big takeaways from the most thourough review of GMO's yet You can search for committee responses to specific public comments online here . You can also search for the reasoning behind each of the findings and recommendations and come to your own conclusion about the committee's findings and interpretation of data. Read more
Report Release Event The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will hold a public release of the new report Genetically Engineered Crops: Experiences and Prospects on Tuesday May 17th at the Academies Keck Center in Washington, DC. This consensus report examines a range of questions and opinions about the economic, agronomic, health, safety, or other impacts of genetically engineered (GE) crops and food. Claims and research that extol both the benefits and risks of GE crops have created a confusing landscape for the public and for policy makers. This report is intended to provide an independent, objective examination of what has been learned since the introduction of GE crops, based on current evidence. Read more
Recent graduates finding success Former GES students Amanda Clayton and Molly Hartzog have both recently accepted impressive industry jobs. Amanda will be working for the Research Triangle Institute and Molly has accepted a faculty position at Frostburg State University in Maryland. Congratulations to these hardworking grads! We are so proud of our former students and can't wait to see what they accomplish in the future.
David Berube has been appointed to the US FDA Risk Communication Advisory Committee through the year 2020.
DuPont Pioneer plans to market gene edited CRISPR corn, USDA will not regulate it as a GMO The US Department of Agriculture has made the decision to not subject the CRISPR corn to the same rules as traditional GMO's. The main reason for this is that the CRISPR-edited crops don't contain any "introduced genetic material" or foreign DNA, and so would not be a threat to other plants. Read more
Jennifer Kuzma and Kathleen Vogel speaking at MSMR Conference Jennifer Kuzma and Kathleen Vogel will be opening plenary speakers at the Massachusetts Society for Medical Research THREE Is Conference on biosecurity, co-hosted by the Department of Justice, FBI, and NC Association for Biomedical Research.
Dr. David Berube received a grant to create the Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network. The RTNN offers unprecedented access to nanotechnology facilities in the Research Triangle to researchers from across the nation. Their education, workforce training, and outreach programs are comprehensive and will train the next generation of scientists, engineers, and technicians. Read more . You can also listen to an interview with Dr. Berube from Honolulu about energy and public policy. Learn more
GES Center Resident Faculty Research Fellow Dr. David Berube speaks as part of HPU Presidential Lecture Series. Dr. David Berube presented a lecture at Hawaii Pacific University titled, "Emerging Technologies, Energy, and Public Engagement" on April 18th. This lecture is part of HPU's Presidential Lecture Series on Global Leadership and Sustainability, a program funded by a generous grant from Hawaiian Electric Industries. Dr. Berube's lecture examined a set of emerging technologies, their impact on the energy footprint, and the signatures they leave on the surrounding ecosystems and communities. Read more
Max Scott's article on genetically modified maggots receiving significant news recognition. Read Max's article, Towards next generation maggot debridement therapy: transgenic Lucilia sericata larvae that produce and secrete a human growth factor and the headline on Gizmodo, a design and technology blog, about it.
Jennifer Kuzma was provisionally appointed to the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Future Biotechnology Products and Opportunities to Enhance Capabilities of the Biotechnology Regulatory System The committee was drawn from over 250 nominations, considering the full range of expertise and experience needed to address the study's statement of task. The committee will hold its first public meeting in Washington, DC on April 18, 2016. The study will provide an independent and objective examination of the future products of biotechnology. The U.S. regulatory system for biotechnology products was originally designed in the 1980s. The committee will identify the types of products that may be produced with biotechnology in the next 10 years and provide advice on the scientific capabilities, tools, and expertise that may be necessary to regulate those future products. The committee will produce a consensus report that will be available to the public upon its release in late 2016 after undergoing a rigorous external peer-review process.
Photos from the Gene Drives Workshop On February 24-26 the GES Center hosted A Roadmap to Gene Drives: A Deliberative Workshop to Develop Frameworks for Research and Governance.
Attitudes Toward Governance of Gene Editing This article by Jennifer Kuzma is featured in the March 2016 issue of Asian Biotechnology and Review. The journal article was distributed in this volume at an international workshop on agricultural biotechnology organized by United Nations FAO.
Rajade Berry-James Receives COMPA Award Rajade Berry-James, Associate Professor of Public Administration, who has been named as the recipient of the National Conference of Minority Public Administrators' (COMPA) 2016 Public Service Award. The award, which is COMPA's highest, recognizes accomplishments in academics and practice, particularly in advancing the causes of minorities. COMPA is a section of the American Society for Public Administration whose mission is to serve and assist public administrators, students and other professionals involved in public service. Dr. Berry-James was presented the award at COMPA's Annual Meeting, February 17-19, in Jackson
GMOs and the Future of the Global Food Supply and Medical Innovations Jennifer Kuzma and Rob Fraley, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Monsanto, discussed the risks and benefits of GMO's at this conference hosted by CATO University.
The GES Center is pleased to have received two grants from the NSF, as described below. Comparing Cultures of Responsible Innovation across Bioengineering Communities Principal Investigator: Jennifer Kuzma; Co-Principal Investigator: Joseph Herkert, Erin Banks, David Berube, Fred Gould Organization: North Carolina State University; NSF Organization: SES This action funds a three year standard grant in the cross-directorate program of Cultivating Cultures for Ethical STEM. Issues surrounding genetic engineering, biotechnology, and synthetic biology are contentious, especially when applied to food, the environment, and industrial applications for which direct human consent and medical benefits are not present. How researchers, developers, and policy-makers communicate about and reflect upon their work is of utmost importance to the fields of bioengineering. This research fills an important niche by encouraging those involved in biotechnology innovation systems to reflect on the ethical dimensions of their work and what it means to innovate responsibly. Gene Drives: A Deliberative Workshop to Develop Frameworks for Research and Governance Principal Investigator: Jennifer Kuzma; Co-Principal Investigator: Fred Gould; Organization:North Carolina State University; NSF Organization: SES This award provides funding for a workshop that is to occur over three full days in the early winter of 2015-2016. The topic of the conference is the governance of gene drives. Experts from four areas will participate in the workshop: Genetics and molecular biology, ecology and ecological modeling, political economy, and STS (including ethics). The structure of the workshop will be designed to engage participants in working together to generate analyses and summaries useful for future decision and policy making about gene drives. Read more