Green Genetic Engineering
Climate-friendly, sustainable, future-proof?
Angewandte Interdisciplinary Lab
Kaiserschild Lectures 2024
The
panel discussion debates the opportunities and challenges of green genetic engineering in agriculture – from mandatory labeling
and patentability to citizen participation.
The technology of genetic scissors is revolutionizing
plant breeding with far-reaching effects for use in agriculture. Improved resilience of plants, higher crop yields and reduced
use of pesticides could lead to a lower environmental impact, reduce costs for farmers and thus contribute to sustainable
global food security.
At the same time, the potential use of this technology is accompanied by controversial debates,
which have gained new momentum, not least due to the EU Commission's planned reform to change the way genetic engineering
is handled in agriculture. Critics fear negative effects on biodiversity, such as the displacement of natural species or the
emergence of superweeds and pests that are resistant to genetically modified plants.
Panel discussion with
• Andreas Bachmair (Max F. Perutz Laboratories, Department for Biochemistry, University of Vienna)
• Franz Fischler (Former EU Commissioner, Franz Fischler Consult)
• Karen Kastenhofer
(Institute of Technology Assessment, Austrian Academy of Sciences)
• Petra Gruber (University of Applied
Arts Vienna)
Moderation: Judith Belfkih
The lecture is carried out by the non-profit Kaiserschild-Stiftung,
the Postgraduate Center of the University of Vienna and the University of Applied Arts Vienna.
