Worldwide: Experts on Gene Drives

We are travelling the world speaking to some of the world’s leading thinkers, activists and academics on the impact of gene drives.

Join us for this video series as we hear from a diverse range of experts on one of the most powerful new emerging technologies that we face.

FULL INTERVIEWS

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Ali Tapsoba & Guy Yaméogo

Q1. What has been Burkina Faso’s past experience with genetic engineering, before the arrival of Target Malaria’s gene drive mosquito project?

Q2. What were the reasons for Burkina Faso cotton traders wanting to stop the cultivation of GMO cotton?

Q3. What were the concerns of Burkinabe civil society about GMO cotton?

Q4. Was there no environmental impact assessment done of GMO cotton in Burkina Faso that was made accessible to Burkinabe civil society?

Q5. Was the cultivation of GMO cotton stopped in Burkina Faso?

Q6. When did the production of GMO cotton cease in Burkina Faso?

Q7. Was the next genetic engineering project to come to Burkina Faso Target Malaria’s gene drive mosquito project?

Q8. Did the Target Malaria project come to Burkina Faso with new promises that genetic engineering was going to deliver for Burkina Faso?

Q9. Target Malaria promote themselves as being very concerned about local communities in terms of their stakeholder engagement in Burkina Faso. Is this actually the case?

Q10. Have you engaged with Target Malaria directly about your concerns with the gene drive mosquito project in Burkina Faso?

Q11. Why is Target Malaria conducting such a risky gene drive mosquito project in the absence of a proper legislative framework existing in Burkina Faso?

Q12. The UK Times newspaper reported about Target Malaria paying local Burkinabe youth to get bitten by mosquitos and expose themselves to the risk of contracting malaria. Do you know anything about this?

Q13. Did Target Malaria not provide healthcare to the participating youth who contracted malaria while being paid to get bitten by mosquitos?

Q14. As a Burkinabe citizen, how do you feel about some African governments advocating the use of gene drives?

Q15. What concerns do you have about African governments fulfilling their responsibilities when it comes to gene drives?

Q16. As Burkinabe civil society activists, do you have anything to say to the UN Biodiversity Convention regarding gene drives?

Q17. Do you support a moratorium on gene drive organisms releases by the UN Biodiversity Convention? 

Barbara Ntambirweki

Q1. Why are you participating in the UN Biodiversity Convention meetings about gene drives?

Q2. Are there any gene drive mosquito projects currently in Uganda?

Q3. Do you have any issues with Target Malaria’s gene drive project in Uganda?

Q4. What concerns do you have about Target Malaria’s gene drive project in Uganda?

Q5. Why are you concerned about Target Malaria’s gene drive mosquitoes potentially being released in the Ugandan environment?

Q6. What concerns do you have about the UN Biodiversity Convention discussions over gene drives?

Q7. What would you like to see in the biosafety target of the proposed Global Biodiversity Framework at the UN Biodiversity Convention?

Q8. Why is it important that multidisciplinary expertise and inclusivity be a part of technology assessment of gene drives?

Q9. Why is horizon-scanning, monitoring and assessment of new biotechnologies a key concern for African civil society at the UN Biodiversity Convention?

Q10. What would you like to see from African governments in their approach to gene drives?

Fassil Gbeyehu

Q1. What would be a traditional knowledge approach to biodiversity conservation and to new technologies like gene drives?

Q2. How is traditional knowledge approach different or complementary to a “science-based approach” to new technologies like gene drives?

Q3. Do you think Western science and technology is overconfident in asserting that it can understand and anticipate all the risks of new technologies like gene drives?

Q4. Do gene drives pose different risks for African countries than they do for Western countries?

Q5. Do you think new technologies like gene drives are given too much prominence at the UN Biodiversity Convention, as compared with traditional knowledge approaches?

Q6. Does technology transfer only go in one direction, like Western-gene-drives-technology-to-Africa, for instance, or could traditional knowledge and technologies perhaps also be transferred in the other direction?

Q7. Do you think new biotechnologies like gene drives are a threat to Africa’s biodiversity?

Q8. How do you feel about using gene drives to genetically engineer entire species or to genetically engineer extinction?

Q9. How can traditional or indigenous knowledge help to restrain the technological excesses of the dominant knowledge system and/or to mitigate the risks posed by new technologies like gene drives?

Q10. How can we create more space for traditional knowledge in debates over gene drives?

Q11. What would you say to African governments who might be enamoured with the promises surrounding new technologies like gene drives for solving problems they are facing?

Mariam Mayet

Q1. Why did the African Centre for Biodiversity focus its attention on Target Malaria’s gene drives project?

Q2. What aspects of Target Malaria’s gene drive project did the African Centre for Biodiversity’s work focus on?

Q3. What did the African Centre for Biodiversity focus in particular at Target Malaria’s gene drives project in Burkina Faso?

Q4. Why does the African Centre for Biodiversity focus on the ‘financialization of malaria’ in your report on Target Malaria’s gene drives project?

Q5. Solutions and Products for Fighting Malaria & the Target Malaria Gene Drives Project

Q6. What kind of investments are driving Target Malaria’s gene drives project?

Q7. What has been the influence of the Gates Foundation on approaches to malaria control in Africa?

Q8. What did the African Centre for Biodifersity want to bring to the attention of African governments with its report on Target Malaria’s gene drive project?

Q9. What is the African Centre for Biodiversity’s position on strategies for malaria eradication in Africa?

Q10. What did the African Centre for Biodiversity want to bring to the attention of decision-makers with its report on Target Malaria’s gene drive mosquito project?

Q11. What does African Centre for Biodiversity consider to be some of the unanswered biosafety questions about Target Malaria’s gene drives project?

Q12. Does African Centre for Biodiversity argue that Target Malaria is using Africa as a testing ground for risky gene drives experiments?

Q13. What does African Centre for Biodiversity mean by ‘rogue capital’ in the context of Target Malaria’s gene drives project?

Q14. How does ‘rogue capital’ operate in the context of projects like Target Malaria’s gene drives project?

Q15. What does African Centre for Biodiversity mean by the ‘financialization of malaria’ in the context of Target Malaria’s gene drives project?

Q16. Does African Centre for Biodiversity consider Target Malaria’s gene drives project to be part of the commodification of malaria?

Q17. Are Target Malaria’s gene drive mosquitos a solution for malaria eradication or simply an investible technology?

Q18. How does African Centre for Biodiversity see the future of African governance of technologies like gene drives?

Q19. How does African Centre for Biodiversity see the role of African civil society in the governance of genetic engineering and gene drives in Africa?

Q20. Has the Gates Foundation money managed to open up Africa to GMOs and gene drives despite African civil society resistance?

Q21. What do you think about the Gates Foundation funding a younger generation of African researchers in genetic technologies and funding African lobbying associations for gene drives?

Mfoniso Anti

Q1. What is AfriTAP (African Technology Assessment Platform) and how does it relate to gene drives?

Q2. What kinds of technologies has AfriTAP been working on besides gene drives?

Q3.What has AfriTAP observed about proposals for using these new technologies including gene drives in Africa?

Q4. How do African governments respond to African civil society calling for technology assessment of new technologies like gene drives?

Q5. What concerns do you have about gene drive technologies?

Q6. AfriTAP’s Webinars on Technology Assessment Issues in Africa

Q7. Are there any gene drive projects in Nigeria?

Q8. What would you like to say to the African governments at the UN Biodiversity Convention regarding gene drives?

Q9. What essential questions need to be asked in a technology assessment of gene drives?

Q10. What would you say to Target Malaria at Imperial College London?

Sabrina Masinjila

Q1. Concerns about gene drives in the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework

Q2. Why is technology transfer of new technologies like gene drives to African countries not simply a good thing?

Q4. Why are today’s African governments seemingly more favourable toward gene drives?

Q5. What is the African Centre for Biodiversity’s position on new technologies like gene drives for Africa?

Lim Li Ching

Q1. How are horizon-scanning and monitoring for potential threats posed by new biotechnologies like gene drives a part of the UN Biodiversity Convention?

Q2. In what way is the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety an expression of the UN Biodiversity Convention’s approach to technology assessment?

Q3. How is the UN Biodiversity Convention currently discussing technology assessment of new biotechnologies like gene drives?

Q4. Do the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework discussions consider the potential risks posed by new biotechnologies like gene drives?

Q5. Do gene drive organisms need new forms of risk assessment than earlier GMOs?

Q6. Who would be liable for any damage caused by gene drive organisms?

Q7. Why is there a need for multidisciplinary expertise and inclusivity when implementing technology assessment?

Q8. How would technology assessment address debates over releasing gene drive mosquitos to fight malaria?

Tom Wakeford

Q1. Why is technology assessment of new technologies like gene drives important?

Q2. Why is it important to include ordinary people, though they may not have technical expertise, in technology assessment of gene drives?

Q3. What kinds of people might be involved in technology assessment of gene drives?

Q4. Why should technology assessment of gene drives not only be left to scientists?

Q5. What kinds of knowledge would need to be considered in a technology assessment of gene drives?

Q6. How does the ‘dominant knowledge system’ factor in current debates over gene drives?

Q7. What is meant by the term ‘fourth industrial revolution’ when it is applied to technologies like gene drives?

Q8. How can technology assessment help to mitigate negative impacts of new technologies like gene drives?

Q9. Why is technology assessment important for new technologies like synthetic biology and gene drives?

Q10. Do new technologies like gene drives impact different communities differently or disproportionately?

Q11. How is technology assessment of gene drives a part of the longer history of technology assessment?

Q12. How can technology assessment of new technologies like gene drives be more inclusive?

Q13. How is technology assessment carried out by the UN Biodiversity Convention?

Q14. Why is the voice of civil society important in technology assessment of gene drives?

Q15. What is the ‘assess.technology’ website that ETC Group and partners have created about?

Q16. What is meant by the term ‘horizon-scanning’ in debates over new technologies like gene drives?

Q17. Is horizon-scanning simply about considering the possible adverse impacts of new technologies like gene drives?

Q18. What kinds of questions might need to be asked in conducting a technology assessment of gene drives?

Q19. How would a technology assessment approach consider the use of gene drive mosquitos to fight malaria?

Antonietta Gutièrrez Rosati

Q1. How has the awareness of biosafety developed historically in Peru?

Q2. What were the beginnings of Peru’s institutional approach to biosafety?

Q3. When did Peru create its first biosafety law?

Q4. What difficulties has Peru faced in implementing national biosafety laws?

Q5. How has being the genetic centre of origin of many food crops influenced Peru’s approach to biosafety?

Q6. How was Peru’s national moratorium on introducing GMOs achieved?

Q7. What were the objectives of Peru’s GMO moratorium?

Q8. How has Peru’s GMO moratorium influenced biosafety governance?

Q9. Why was Peru’s GMO moratorium recently extended to 2035?

Q10. What have been the most important results of Peru’s GMO moratorium?

Q11. Has Peru’s GMO moratorium influenced Peru’s national identity?

Q12. How has Peru’s food culture been influenced by Peru’s GMO moratorium?

Q13. How has Peru’s GMO moratorium distinguished Peru from other Latin American countries that chose to grow transgenics?

Q14. How does Peru’s GMO moratorium relate to debates over new genetic technologies in Peru?

Q15. How do you view the claim that new genetic technologies like gene drives are ‘natural’ and therefore need not be regulated as GMOs?

Q16. Has there been much discussion of new genetic technologies like gene drives in Peru?

Q17. How do you think countries should approach the regulation of new genetic technologies like gene drives, that may spread uncontrollably across borders?

Q18. Is Peru developing legislation on gene drives or other new genetic technologies?

Caroline Bedin Zanatta

Q1. International Collaborative Project Investigating the Unintentional Effects of Genetic Engineering on Soybeans

Q2.Why are there still so many unanswered biosafety questions regarding the effects of genetic engineering?

Q3. Why are you interested in researching biosafety?

Q4.What is the ‘Food Print’ project?

Q5. GM Mosquitos Release in Brazil

Q6. Do we have the ability to monitor and track the release of the newer gene edited organisms?

Q7. What is Brazil’s role in ‘Food Print’?

Q8. Is there much discussion in Brazil about genetic engineering?

Claudio Martinez Debat

Q1. What is happening now in Uruguay with the regulation of new genetic engineering technologies like gene drives?

Q2. What problems do you see with restricting decisions over the need for regulating these new genetic technologies to an appointed ‘group of experts’?

Q3. As a molecular biologist, do you consider that the new genetic technologies, which allow for more manipulation of the genome require more investigation and regulation?

Q4. As a scientist, why do you think some scientists downplay the risks of genetic technologies like gene drives?

Q5. Your critique of the proposed deregulation of new genetic technologies in Uruguay mentions gene drives as a potentially disruptive technology, what do you mean by that?

Q6. Gene drives are being sold with promises of solving problems in conservation and human health. Should we believe such promises?

Q7. Do you consider multidisciplinary expertise and wide public participation necessary for assessing new technologies like gene drives?

Q8. What do you say to scientists who might misrepresent their own private interests as being ‘sound science’ that cannot be argued with?

Q9. What other current concerns do you have with new genetic technologies in the Southern Cone region?

Q10. What is ‘the Republic of Soya’?

Q11. Gene drives are being designed to spread across borders and throughout a species, what do you say about that?

Daniel Santi

Q1. How do the Kichwa Sarayaku Indigenous Peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon approach biodiversity conservation?

Q2. How do the Kichwa Sarayaku Indigenous People of the Ecuadorian Amazon view proposals to use gene drive organisms in Ecuador?

Q3. Are Indigenous Peoples genuinely being heard at international meetings like the UNCBD?

Dr. Elizabeth Bravo

Q1. When was Ecuador’s constitutional prohibition of GMOs achieved?

Q2. How was the article in Ecuador’s constitution prohibiting GMOs introduced?

Q3. Ecuador & Genetic Engineering

Q4. Has there been opposition to Ecuador’s constitutional prohibition of GMOs?

Q5. Gene Drives & Invasive Species in the Galapagos Islands

Q6. Ecuador’s constitutional prohibition on GMOs & Gene Drives in the Galapagos Islands

Q7. New Genetic Technologies & ‘De-extinction’

Q8. How has the system of transgenic agriculture impacted ecology and culture in Latin America?

Q9. How do you view risk assessment of new genetic technologies like gene drives?

Q10. How do you view proposals to use GM or gene drive mosquitoes for public health purposes?

Q11. Would using new genetic technologies to resurrect extinct species help to recover ecosystems?

Q12. Problems Surrounding GMO Agriculture in Latin America

Q13. The IUCN and the proposal to use gene drives for nature conservation

Q14. Rights of Nature in Ecuador and New Genetic Technologies

Dr Jaime García González

Q1. What has been the background of debates around GMOs in Costa Rica?

Q3. How is Costa Rica’s National Biodsafety Technical Commission (CTNBio), on which you serve as a representative, organised?

Q4. What concerns do you have about Costa Rica’s production of GMO seeds for export?

Q5.What concerns do you have for Costa Rica’s biodiversity regarding the impact of genetically modified organisms?

Q6. What concerns do you have with debates around the introduction of new genetic technologies?

Q7. How do you view the growing of GMO crops in Costa Rica in relation to Costa Rica’s concept of simple life, ‘pura vida’?

Q8. How do you view debates about the release of genetically modified organisms into the environment?

Q9. On proposals to use gene drives for nature conservation

Q10. How do you view proposals that new genetic technologies can be used to ‘de-extinct’ extinct species?

Q11. As a representative before Costa Rica’s National Biosafety Technical Commission, how do you view gene drives?

Q12. Do you think gene drive organisms could be controlled or managed once released into the environment?

Q14. As a representative before Costa Rica’s National Biosafety Technical Commission, how do you view proposals to deregulate new genetic technologies?

Q15. How do you view arguments that new genetic technologies like gene drives are ‘natural’ and therefore don’t need to be regulated as GMOs?

Q16. How do you see some scientists’ claims that new genetic technologies are ‘safe’ and ‘natural’ and therefore don’t need to be subjected to risk assessment or regulatory oversight?

Q17. How do you view the involvement of some celebrities in promoting new genetic technologies?

Q18. How do you view public relations surrounding new genetic technologies?

Q19. How do you view proposals that new genetic technologies and synthetic biology can be used for ‘conservation’ or for genetically engineering wild species?

Q20. How do you see the role of some scientists in positively promoting the new genetic technologies while at the same time downplaying legitimate concerns around risks?

Q21. Do you think scientists have the power to ‘control life’ with new genetic technologies?

Q22. How do you see the role of money in the positive spin put on new genetic technologies like gene drives?

José Maria Gusman Ferraz

Q1. What were the circumstances surrounding the release of Oxitec’s GMO mosquitoes in Brazil?

Q2. How were Oxitec’s GM mosquito tests in the Brazilian communities of Jacobina and Juazeiro

Q3. How did you respond to Oxitec’s proposed release of GM mosquitoes in Jacobina and Juazeiro?

Q4. As a Brazilian biosafety official, what were some of the concerns that you raised regarding Oxitec’s GM mosquito releases in Jacobina and Juazeiro?

Q5. How were the local populations in Jacobina and Juazeiro informed about the release of GM mosquitoes among the communities?

Q6. What was the response of CTNBio to your concerns raised about Oxitec’s GM mosquito releases?

Q7. What are the concerns with Oxitec’s GM mosquitoes crossing with wild mosquitoes and persisting in the environment?

Q8. What was Oxitec’s response to the study showing their GM mosquito has crossed with wild mosquitos and was persisting in the environment?

Q9. Were there other experimental GM mosquito releases in Brazil?

Q10. Has Oxitec disputed the data showing its GM mosquitoes crossed with wild mosquitoes and have persisted in the environment?

Q11. Did Oxitec’s GM mosquitoes get approval for commercial release in Brazil?

Q12. What are some of the concerns you have with CTNBio’s approval process for GMOs?

Q13. What concerns do you have with future plans for gene drive mosquitoes, given your experience with Oxitec’s GM mosquitoes?

Q14. What other GMO experiments in Brazil did you have concerns about as a CTNBio member?

Q15. What other concerns do you have about gene drive organisms?

Leonardo Melgarejo

Q1. Is Brazil also planning on releasing gene drives?

Q2. Brazil & Concerns on Experimental Releases of GM Mosquitos?

Q3. GM Mosquitos & Mosquito Population Suppression in Brazil

Q4. What concerns do you have about potential gene drive mosquito releases in Brazil?

Q5. Why have GM mosquito releases continued in Brazil?

Q6. Lack of Transparency & Releases of GM Mosquitos in Brazil

Q7. Is Brazilian food insecurity related to the expansion of genetic engineering in Brazil?

Q8. What concerns do you have as a Brazilian about gene drive technology?

Q9. Why did Brazil become the first country to pass legislation paving the way for environmental releases of gene drives?

Q10. What problems do you see as a former member of Brazil’s National Biosafety Technical Commission (CTNBio) with regard to the deregulation of new genetic technologies?

Q11. What implications might there be with Brazil deregulating the release of organisms derived from new genetic technologies?

Q12. How did the deregulation of new genetic technologies in Brazil manage to get through the decision-making process?

Q13. What other ‘externalities’ do you see emanating from the deregulation of new genetic technologies in Brazil?

Q14. What glyphosate resistant GMO crops are in Brazil and why is this a problem, from your perspective?

Q15. What problems do you see with Brazil’s approval of many new pesticides and new genetic technologies?

Q16. How are new genetic technologies and new pesticides seen in the context of Brazil’s system of food production?

Q17. How does Brazil’s approval of many pesticides banned elsewhere relate to gene drives?

Q18. What is an illustrative example of a ‘cisgenic’ product?

Q19. What is your concern with the expansion of new genetic technologies in Brazil?

Q20. What are your concerns with Brazil being a producer of GMO commodity crops for export?

Q21. How have previous Brazilian governments differed from the Bolsonaro government in relation to genetic technologies?

Q22. What was your experience as a member of Brazil’s National Biosafety Technical Commission (CTNBio)?

Q23. What is considered to be ‘productive’ or ‘non-productive’ in the current Brazilian agricultural system?

Q24. What diseases have been associated with the expansion of GMO agriculture and chemical-industrial agribusiness in Brazil?

Q25. What other concerns do you have about the expansion of GMO agriculture in Brazil?

Q26. As a former member of Brazil’s National Biosafety Technical Commission (CTNBio), what problems do you see with GMO risk assessment in Brazil?

Q27. What other distortion factors in risk analysis of GMOs in Brazil do you see, as a former member of Brazil’s National Biosafety Technical Commission?

Q28. What potential do you see with the incoming Brazilian government to be able to address some of the concerns with GMO agriculture in Brazil?

Q29. What do you think we can expect from the incoming Brazilian government with regard to new technologies like gene drives?

Q30. Do you think Brazil’s incoming government will address threats to the Amazon coming from genetic engineering technologies?

Prof. Dr. Rubens Onofre Nodari

Q1. International Collaborative Project on the Unintentional Effects of CRISPR/Cas9 Gene Editing

Q2. Which countries are involved in your international collaborative project on the unintentional effects of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing?

Q3. Do newer genetic technologies like CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing need to be regulated, or are the, as some people argue, more ‘precise’ and ‘natural’?

Q4. What is the Brazilian government’s position on regulating the newer genetic engineering technologies, like CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing and gene drives?

Q5. How developed is current scientific understanding of the effects of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing?

Q6. Is CRISPR/Cas9 cheaper and easier to use than previous genetic engineering technologies?

Q7. Does CRISPR/Cas9 allow for a much wider range of potential target organisms for genetic engineering than earlier genetic engineering techniques?

Q8. What would be the combined effect of genetically engineering potentially many species in the environment?

Q9. Does CRISPR/Cas9 give us the power to control evolution?

Q10. What would be some of the biosafety risks of using gene drives to genetically engineer entire species?

Q11. What do you think about plans for using gene drives to eliminate invasive species?

Q12. What could potentially go wrong with using gene drives mice to eliminate invasive rodents?

Q13. Gene Drives & Genetic Modifications

Q14. Why are some scientists seemingly so fixated on using gene drives to solve problems?

Q15. What is ‘sound science’ in relation to gene drives?

Q16. Why do some scientists seek to exclude diverse voices from being included in assessing the risk of gene drives?

Q17. Governments & Responsible Approaches to Regulating New Biotechnologies

Dr. Debra Harry

Q1. Is there an indigenous peoples’ perspective on gene drives?

Q2. How do indigenous peoples evaluate biotechnologies like gene drives?

Q3. Should human beings be rewriting the genetic code of life?

Q4. Is controlling or owning the genetic basis of life also a kind of colonialism?

Q5. How do indigenous people’s traditional knowledge systems factor in debates over gene drives?

Q6. How is an indigenous people’s worldview different from that of Western societies?

Q7. How can Western science better engage with indigenous peoples?

Q8. How can we ensure the genuine participation of indigenous peoples in the governance of gene drives?

Edward Hammond

Q1. CBD & Gene Drives and Conflicts of Interest

Q2. What would a robust assessment of the risks of gene drives look like?

Q3. DARPA & Gene Drives

Q4. What do the Gene Drive Files have to say about the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation involvement in gene drives?

Q5. Who should be consulted in making decisions about the deployment of gene drives?

Q6. Why is an inclusive process necessary in discussions about gene drives?

Q7. How can we insure accountability in decision making around gene drives?

Ignacio Chapela

Q1. Gene Drives & Transgenic Contamination

Q3. Are gene drives’ promises science fiction?

Q4. How has cultural engineering influenced debates over GMOs and now gene drives?

Q6.  Indigenous and Local Communities & the right to say ‘no’ to gene drive organisms

Q7. Are gene drives more dangerous than earlier GMOs?

Jim Thomas

Q1. Why does ETC Group campaign on gene drives?

Q2. Why is there such apparent haste from groups to deploy gene drives?

Q3. Are gene drives a radical departure from earlier genetic engineering technologies?

Q4. Why does ETC Group campaign for ‘technology assessment’ of gene drives?

Q5. What are some of the key debates in assessing gene drive technology?

Q6. What kind of conversations should we be having about gene drives?

Riley Taitingfong

Q2. Gene Drive Developers

Q3. As an indigenous scholar how do you approach debates over gene drives?

Q4. Gene Drive Developers & Local and Indigenous Communities

Q5. What is a ‘deficit model of engagement’?

Q6. How could engagement over gene drives be done differently?

Q7. Are islands really contained places suitable for gene drives experimentation?

Q8. The Myth of Isolation

Q12. How can we better frame our conversations about gene drives?

Q13. Where does the story of a gene drive start?

#SHORTS

Browse through #shorts where our interviewees discuss several issues in the context of gene drives.