Research & Activities
- Campus Project Partnerships
- Data Science
- Active Genetics
- Environment
- COSMOS Ethics Essay
Ethics and Social Implications of Active Genetics
Recent breakthroughs in gene editing — including gene drive technology — make it clear there are both powerful opportunities to alter genes for the common good and substantial ethical considerations that must be addressed. As gene drives graduate from experimentation to practical application, the expertise developed both at UC San Diego and beyond will be crucial in considering the opportunities and risks of transformational impact on a local, and well as global, scale.
In collaboration with the UC San Diego Tata Institute for Genetics and Society, the Institute for Practical Ethics supports a research program on the ethics of active genetics. This program includes the formation of the Ethics of Active Genetics Working Group, workshops on the ethics of active genetics, and the training of scientists.
The inaugural Ethics and Social Implications of Gene Drive Conference was held May 9-10, 2019.
Working Group on Active Genetics
Working Group Members
Cinnamon Bloss
Department of Psychiatry and Family Medicine/Public Health
Reuven Brandt
Department of Philosophy
Craig Callender
Department of Philosophy
Daniel Callies
Postdoctoral Scholar, Institute for Practical Ethics
John H. Evans
Department of Sociology; Tata Chancellor’s Chair in Social Sciences
Robert M. Friedman
Vice President for Policy and University Relations, J. Craig Venter Institute
JiMin Kwon
Ph.D. Fellow, Department of Philosophy
Kerry McKenzie
Department of Philosophy
Daniel Navon
Department of Sociology
Ramya Rajogopalan
Institute for Practical Ethics
Cynthia Schairer
Postdoctoral scholar, Department of Psychiatry
Riley I. Taitingfong
Ph.D. Fellow, Department of Communication
Ann Thresher
Ph.D. Fellow, Department of Philosophy
Cynthia Triplett
Research coordinator, Calit2
Saiba Varma
Department of Anthropology
Kamala Visweswaran
Department of Ethnic Studies
Events Archive
Date: Monday, October 1, 2018
Topic: Introduction/General Discussion of Gene Drives (Craig A. Callender and John H. Evans, Co-Directors, IPE)
Date: Monday, October 29, 2018
Topic 1: Ethics in Practice in Gene Drive Research (Ramya Rajagopalan, Assistant Research Scientist, IPE)
Topic 2: Expert and Public Perceptions of Gene Drives (Amy Zhou, Postdoctoral Scholar, IPE)
Date: Monday, December 3, 2018
Topic 1: The Ethical Landscape of Gene Drives (Daniel Callies, Postdoctoral Scholar, IPE)
Topic 2: Social Issues in Genetic Engineering for Vector Control (Cinnamon Bloss, Associate Professor, Family Medicine & Public Health)
Date: Tuesday, January 8, 2019
Topic 1: Editing the Aina: Indigenous Knowledge and Conservation Gene Drives in Hawai’i (Riley Taitingfong, PhD Candidate in Communication and PhD Fellow, IPE)
Topic 2: Q&A with Ethan Bier, TIGS & Division of Biological Sciences
Date: Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Topic 1: Gene Drives and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (Bob Friedman, Vice President for Policy and University Relations at the J. Craig Venter Institute)
Topic 2: Choosing a Decision-Making Framework for Gene Drive Policy: Precautionary Principle vs. Risk-Weighted Decision Theory (Hailey Kwon, PhD Candidate in Philosophy and PhD Fellow, IPE)
Date: Wednesday, April 24, 2019
Topic: Editing the Wild: Gene Drives in Conservation (Emma Marris, environmental journalist and writer)
Date: Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Topic: The Subjects and Objects of Gene Drives (Kamala Visweswaran, Professor, Ethnic Studies, and Kaustuv Roy, Professor, Biology).