The Promise and Perils of Genetically
Altered Food
November 7, 8, and 9, 2004
Thursday November 4: Kick-off Lecture
We are in the midst of a revolution in the nature of our food supply. Advances in biotechnology have allowed the genetic manipulation of a wide range of crops. Today Americans are consuming products ranging from corn flakes to diet soda that may contain genetically altered ingredients. In the United States over 70 million acres are now devoted to crops that have been genetically altered. Defenders of these products point out that humans have been breeding new strains of plants and animals for millennia, and argue that high-growth, insect resistant crops may be the answer to world food shortages. Critics respond that new bio-engineered food may pose health risks to humans, and may, if they get out of control, cause disruptions in the ecosystem. In this symposium we will examine the scientific, social and economic implications of genetically altered food.
Participants:
Alex A. Avery: Director of Research and Education at the Center for Global Food Issues at the Hudson Institute. He has written on agricultural, food safety, regulatory and global population issues for major newspapers, magazines, and scientific journals. His article on international food regulations will appear in the Wiley Encyclopedia of Food Science and Technology, second edition.
Sujatha Byravan: Executive Director at the Council for Responsible Genetics. She was previously director of the Fellows Program at LEAD (Leadership for Environment and Development) International. She was coordinator of the Science Training and Communication Centre at the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore, India. Former editor for Resonance, an undergraduate science journal produced by the Indian Academy of Sciences, Dr. Byravan is author of numerous articles. *Class of '65 Lectureship Series Speaker.
Martha L. Crouch: Consultant on the relationships between biotechnology, agriculture and the environment. She was trained in botany as an undergraduate at Oregon State University, received her M.S. and Ph.D. in plant developmental biology from Yale University, and was an Associate Professor of Biology at Indiana University for 20 years before leaving academia in 2000. While at IU, Dr. Crouch taught courses at the interface of science and the liberal arts, such as the Biology of Food, the Ecology of Everyday Life, and Life Through the Eyes of a Potato: the Changing Face of Agriculture. She is the author of many articles including "Biotechnology and Sustainable Agriculture" which appeared in Ag Bioethics Forum 4, June 1992.
Gregory E. Pence: Philosophy Department, University of Alabama, Birmingham. In 1994 he won the Ingalls Award, UAB's highest award for teaching. Graduating cum laude in 1970 (philosophy) from William and Mary, he earned a Ph.D. in 1974 from New York University. Among his many publications is: Designer Food: Mutant Harvest or Breadbasket of the World? (Rowman & Littlefield, 2002).
Thursday November 4 -Kick-off Lecture
7:30 p.m. Jeff Hughes - Professor of Biology - Science Center 137
The Development and Potential of Genetically Modified Foods
9:00 p.m. Reception hosted by Beta Beta Beta: The Biology Club
Sunday November 7
4:00 p.m. Gregory Pence - Four Frames on GM Veggies
- Horner 102
8:00 p.m. Sujatha Byravan - Genetically Engineered Plants: Worth the Risks? -
Horner 102
*Class of '65 Lectureship Series Speaker.
9:30 p.m. Reception hosted by American Chemical
Society
Monday November 8
1:30 - 3:00 p.m. Roundtable
Discussion - CC Boardroom
4:00 p.m. Martha Crouch - Engineered vs. Nurtured: How Food Culture
Affects Nature - Horner 102
8:00 p.m. Alex
Avery - Genetically Altered Food: An Environmental and Food Safety
Imperative for the 21st Century
- Horner 102
9:30 p.m. Reception hosted by Beta Beta Beta: The Biology Club
Tuesday November 9
10:00 a.m. Roundtable
Discussion - CC Boardroom
Symposium ends.
*Established by the Class of 1965 as a senior class gift, the Class of '65 Lectureship Fund is an endowed fund used to support bringing nationally known speakers to campus.
