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Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications Dirk Stemerding Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 SynBio debate 1. SynBio debate about innovation , risk and issues of power & control 2. Responsible research and innovation (RRI) 3. SynBio Mobilisation and Mutual Learning Action Plan (SYNENERGENE)

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 A variety of concerns GMO biosafety assessment? SynBio A new Innovation biosecurity threat? Revolutionalizing biotechnology Area in which Europe Patents should invest to tackle or societal needs, promote open source? ‘smart’ and ‘sustainable’ growth, and raise global Ethics of competitive status engineering life?

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 GMO biosafety assessment? For the time being current biosafety regime appropriate, but will have to face: • New uncertainties as a result of increasing complexity and unfamiliarity of synbio research and applications • Major challenges when moving from containment to deliberate release • Incorporating precautionary principles as a basic value? • Ethics of not developing SynBio?

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 A new biosecurity threat? Changing political context and aim of SynBio to make biology ‘easy to engineer’ raise new dual use issues: • Global proliferation and distribution of knowledge makes oversight increasingly difficult • Need to raise awareness among scientists • Need for institutional capacity to monitor and assess biosecurity implications of new science and technology

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 Patenting or Potential tension between open source? two different intellectual property regimes : • As an engineering science based on ‘standardized parts’ SynBio aims at a high level of freedom to operate • Where to draw the line between public versus private ownership of parts and design principles? • ‘Unnaturalness’ of its creations might make it easier to patent SynBio products!

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 Ethics of engineering life? Life as a machine that can be instrumentalized and appropriated: adding a “new layer of power to nature” • SynBio as ‘technological fix’, promoting new forms of exploitation of natural resources and communities? • Aim of controlling and (re)designing life as a sign of human hubris

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 Comfortable division of labour? Ethical SynBio Legal Innovation Social Agenda Implications Health Food Energy Materials

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 Engaging civil society in SynBio innovation Free download at: www.rathenau.nl/synbio

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 Meeting of Young Minds (2011) iGEM students in debate with Political Youth Organisations Do we really know how to perfect nature?

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 A new collaborative relationship? RRI is a transparent, Interactive process by which societal actors and innovators become mutually responsive to each other with a view to the (ethical) acceptability, sustainability and societal desirability of the innovation process (in order to allow a proper embedding of scientific and technological advances in our society)

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 Engaging with science and technology: responsible governance of the science and society relationship

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 • International Genetically Engineered Machines competition • From 5 teams in 2004 to 170 teams in 2012 (30 countries ) • Three-months projects but often impressive results • Human practices

Synthetic Biology: a new engineering science and its societal implications – Science Café Wageningen 16 Sept 2013 SynBio Futures • Annual calls for promising contributions of iGEM teams to societally desirable themes of innovation • Elaboration of promising project ideas in application scenarios • Real-time technology assessment of application scenarios, involving relevant stakeholders, publics and policy makers • Outcomes are made available through publications and to European and national research councils Athena Institute