“Synthetic Biology, Gene Drives, and the Ethics of Manipulating Evolutionary Processes for Conservation Goals”

In the last decade, genetic technologies have increasingly been considered viable options for conservation purposes. The implementation of these technologies is held in check by widespread regulatory gaps which fail to grapple with the technologies’ potential effects on ecological function and evolutionary processes as well as their bioethical implications. This project aims to address the ethical challenges in biodiversity conservation policy and asks hard questions about the role of synthetic biology, its products, its role in public policy, and its long-term material impact on biodiversity.