BIO Deutschland Joins the Discussions at the Green Genetic Engineering Workshop

On 9 October 2013, representatives of BIO Deutschland took part in the workshop, Green Genetic Engineering – Teaching Openness towards New Technologies, in Hanover. During the well-attended event, participants shared their experiences of dealing with green genetic engineering, which is currently a controversial technology. They discussed the developments of the past years and talked about ways to increase openness towards technology in terms of generating objective, open and interested attitudes towards new technologies and their applications, particularly towards the latest technologies. The participants generally regarded the fact that positions in the discussion have become entrenched as problematic. They were also concerned about how difficult it has become to state the various positions neutrally. The participants then split up into smaller groups to discuss ways to keep the debates open and neutral and to create interest in dealing with new technologies.

The Green Genetic Engineering Workshop took place as part of the project, Openness towards Technology and Innovation Friendliness in German Society, which is run by Technopolis Deutschland and the F.A.Z. Institute on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. The aim of the project is to foster openness towards new technologies. In total, five workshops on the topics of mobile communications, green genetic engineering, nanotechnology, smart-home technologies and the cross-cutting subject of education will take place until mid-2014. The workshops provide an opportunity to talk with experts about the challenges of fostering openness towards technology in various fields. The results and action recommendations will be presented at a closing event in Berlin in mid-2014.