We now have the ability to edit human genes. In fact, scientists have just successfully edited genes in human embryos to repair a common and serious disease-causing mutation, producing apparently healthy embryos. Yet these technologies raise “moral and ethical considerations in purposefully altering human evolution.”
Josephine Johnston, Director of Research at The Hastings Center looks at widely held ethical concerns about how or whether these emerging biotechnologies should be employed.
Venue: Royal Society Te Apārangi, Aronui Lecture Theatre, 11 Turnbull Street, Thorndon, Wellington
For further information and to register: www.eventbrite.co.nz/e/when-can-do-crosses-should-do-human-gene-editing-wellington-tickets-37110831496
You might also be interested in this related event: Editing our genes: promises and pitfalls.
Useful links
Related resources
Use our ethics and science topic to discover articles, videos, teacher resources and more to help engage your students in meaningful ethical discussions. Alternatively the resources below are a good starting point:
- Teaching ethics – article
- Ethics in science planner – PLD article
- Ethical thinking in science – recorded PLD webinar
Activity idea
The Ethics thinking toolkit provides students with scaffolding when using a range of different ethical frameworks or approaches.
