April 28, 2000
The ethical implications of genetic engineering will be discussed at a national seminar in Wellington on the weekend of 6,7 May.
The event is being organized by the Environmental Risk Management Authority, as part of its public awareness programme, and is being held at Te Papa. ERMA is the agency set up to control the introduction of new organisms, including GMOS, and hazardous substances into New Zealand.
The session on ethical issues will include presentations from the Rt. Rev Dr Tom Brown, Anglican Bishop of Wellington and from Dr Mark Fisher, an Ag Research scientist specializing in the ethics of animal welfare. They will talk about Christian views of GE and the ethical issues involved in the use of human genes.
It is one of 7 sessions exploring different aspects of GE and its potential effects, including ecological, health, cultural and agricultural issues.
The seminar will be opened by the Hon Marian Hobbs, Minister for the Environment.
Over a hundred participants are expected to attend, including scientists, industry groups, Maori, and environmental groups, teachers and students.
ERMA New Zealand spokeswoman, Karen Cronin, said the seminar was being run in the interest of getting up to date information - to establish what is currently known about GE and its effects and what more is still to be found out.
"We think it will be a timely contribution to the current state of knowledge in New Zealand. We hope it will provide a useful input to the work of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Genetic Modification, which has just been established. It is also an opportunity to put the scientific issues into a wider social context and so it will appeal to a wide range of participants," she said.
People were coming from all over the country to attend, plus one person from the US who read about the seminar on the internet. For more information on the programme, see the ERMA New Zealand website at www.ermanz.govt.nz
A number of senior New Zealand journalists will be taking part in the seminar as commentators. Media passes will also be available for other journalists to cover the event.
For further information contact:
Karen Cronin,
Communications Manager,
ERMA New Zealand
Tel: +64 4 496 4826