scholarly journals Pathways of Conflict: Lessons from the Cultivation of MON810 in Germany in 2005–2008 for Emerging Conflicts over New Breeding Techniques

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 144
Author(s):  
Beate Friedrich

The paper uses qualitative interviews and document analysis to examine conflicts over plant and animal breeding techniques from the perspectives of Social and Political Ecology. It asks how past conflicts over genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can inform understandings of possible trajectories of emerging conflicts over new breeding techniques (NBTs) such as CRISPR/Cas genome editing. Case studies of conflicts in three areas where the transgenic maize MON810 was cultivated in Germany from 2005–2008 show that the escalation of conflict coincided with the first tangible presence of these already controversial organisms in the rural landscape. Location-specific interlinkages between discursive and material dimensions gave rise to different pathways of conflict in the three areas studied. These empirical results inform the analysis of emerging conflicts over NBTs in Germany and the United Kingdom. The future of NBTs in both countries is still open, and the divergence of regulatory frameworks in Europe could lead to the development of ‘NBT hotspots’ located in particular European countries, provoking an escalation of conflict in areas where commercial application takes place. The paper concludes by examining the potential for a politicization of future conflicts to encompass wider issues related to the transformation of agricultural systems towards sustainability.

Author(s):  
Silas Obukosia ◽  
Olalekan Akinbo ◽  
Woldeyesus Sinebo ◽  
Moussa Savadogo ◽  
Samuel Timpo ◽  
...  

A new set of breeding techniques, referred to as New Breeding Techniques developed in the last two decades have potential for enhancing improved productivity in crop and animal breeding globally. These include site directed nucleases based genomic editing procedures-CRISPR and Cas associated proteins, Zinc Finger Nucleases, Meganucleases/Homing Endonucleases and Transcription- Activator Like-Effector Nucleases for genome editing and other technologies including- Oligonucleotide-Directed Mutagenesis, Cisgenesis and intragenesis, RNA-Dependent DNA methylation; Transgrafting, Agroinfiltration, Reverse breeding. There are ongoing global debates on whether the processes of and products emerging from these technologies should be regulated as genetically modified organisms or approved as conventional products. Decisions on whether to regulate as GMOs are based both on understanding of the molecular basis of their development and if the GMO intermediate step was used. For example- cisgenesis, can be developed using Agrobacterium tumefaciens methods of transformation, a process used by GMO but if the selection is properly conducted the intermediate GMO elements will be eliminated and the final product will be identical to the conventionally developed crops. Others like Site Directed Nuclease 3 are regulated as GMOs in countries such as United State of America, Canada, European Union, Argentina, Australia. Progress in genome editing research, testing of genome edited bacterial blight resistant rice, development of Guidelines for regulating new breeding techniques or genome editing in Africa is also covered with special reference to South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria. Science- and evidence-based approach to regulation of new breeding techniques among regulators and policy makers should be strongly supported.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 165-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beate Friedrich ◽  
Sarah Hackfort ◽  
Miriam Boyer ◽  
Daniela Gottschlich

The use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) embodies a specific vision of agricultural systems that is highly controversial. The article focuses on how conflicts over GMOs contribute towards food democracy. Food democracy is defined as the possibility for all social groups to participate in, negotiate and struggle over how societies organize agricultural production, thereby ensuring that food systems fulfil the needs of people and sustain (re)productive nature into the future. EU agricultural policy envisages the coexistence of agricultural and food systems with and without GMOs. This policy, which on the surface appears to be a means of avoiding conflict, has in fact exacerbated conflict, while creating obstacles to the development of food democracy. By contrast, empirical analysis of movements against GMOs in Germany and Poland shows how they create pathways towards participation in the food system and the creation of alternative agricultural futures, thereby contributing to a democratization of food systems and thus of society–nature relations. Today, as products of new breeding techniques such as genome editing are being released, these movements are gaining new relevance.


2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  

SummaryNew breeding techniques are emerging rapidly from advances in genomic research, for application in crop improvement. They enable precise, targeted, reliable changes in the genome (and, thus, are different from genetically modified organisms (GMOs), produced previously) and have significant potential for the sustainable intensification of agriculture and food security, when used as part of the deployment of all available approaches and building on existing good agronomic practice. Unlike chemical- or radiation-induced mutagenesis, often traditionally used as a basis for crop improvement, the new breeding techniques do not create multiple, unknown, unintended mutations throughout the genome.


2013 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 599-627 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clíodhna Murphy

AbstractWhile the rights of domestic workers are expanding in international law, including through the adoption of the ILO Domestic Workers Convention in 2011, migrant domestic workers remain particularly vulnerable to employment-related abuse and exploitation. This article explores the intersection of the employment law and migration law regimes applicable to migrant domestic workers in the United Kingdom, France and Ireland. The article suggests that the precarious immigration status of many migrant domestic workers renders employment protections, such as they exist in each jurisdiction, largely illusory in practice for this group of workers. The labour standards contained in the Domestic Workers Convention, together with the recommendations of the UN Committee on Migrant Workers on the features of an appropriate immigration regime for migrant domestic workers, are identified as providing an alternative normative model for national regulatory frameworks.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nando Sigona ◽  
Jotaro Kato ◽  
Irina Kuznetsova

AbstractThe article examines the migration infrastructures and pathways through which migrants move into, through and out of irregular status in Japan and the UK and how these infrastructures uniquely shape their migrant experiences of irregularity at key stages of their migration projects.Our analysis brings together two bodies of migration scholarship, namely critical work on the social and legal production of illegality and the impact of legal violence on the lives of immigrants with precarious legal status, and on the role of migration infrastructures in shaping mobility pathways.Drawing upon in-depth qualitative interviews with irregular and precarious migrants in Japan and the UK collected over a ten-year period, this article develops a three-pronged analysis of the infrastructures of irregularity, focusing on infrastructures of entry, settlement and exit, casting a comparative light on the mechanisms that produce precarious and expendable migrant lives in relation to access to labour and labour conditions, access and quality of housing and law enforcement, and how migrants adapt, cope, resist or eventually are overpowered by them.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barry Coughlan ◽  
Marinus H. van IJzendoorn ◽  
Matt Woolgar ◽  
Emma Weisblatt ◽  
Robbie Duschinsky

Objectives: Attachment difficulties is an umbrella term often used to describe various forms of non-secure attachment. Differentiating ‘attachment difficulties’ from autism spectrum disorder (hereafter autism) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (hereafter ADHD) has been characterised as challenging. Few studies have explored how this happens in practice, from the perspective of the professionals. Design: Qualitative study. Method: We conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with (n=17) healthcare professionals from five NHS Foundation Trusts in the United Kingdom. Participants were recruited using a combination of snowballing, convenience and purposive sampling. Data were analysed using a thematic approach. Results: We identified six interrelated themes that might reflect difficulties with differential conceptualisation. These include: a clinical lexicon of attachment; approaching attachment with caution; contextual factors; perceived characteristic behaviours; assessing attachment and adjacent supports; spotlighting intervention and dual conceptualisation. Conclusion: Our results indicate some of the ways suspicions around attachment are raised in practice. We advocate for more dialogue between research and practice communities on issues of differential conceptualisation. We call for collaboration between a panel of experts consisting of attachment and neurodevelopmental orientated practitioners and researchers, to clarify issues around differentiating between attachment difficulties, ASD and ADHD.


2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (11) ◽  
pp. 2483-2501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynne Robertson-Rose

AbstractMost private-sector employees in the United Kingdom (UK) are automatically enrolled into individualised defined contribution (DC) pension accounts. In a DC environment, income adequacy in retirement is highly dependent on the decisions that individuals make earlier in their lives. The ease with which they move into employment, and the pension support that they then receive from their employer, can be critical in determining outcomes. This paper discusses how employees respond to workplace pension schemes and the circumstances under which they assess the suitability of their contributions. The findings are based on an embedded case study comprising qualitative interviews with 25 employees of a large UK utility company. Participants were selected on the basis of socio-economic similarity. The research concluded that fixed-term employment negatively impacted on saving for retirement, both with respect to scheme membership and to the level of saving. Furthermore, it was found that the employment context had an influence upon retirement savings behaviour. The proactive approach of the employer in providing retirement benefits, and the trust that employees had in their employer, positively influenced membership and contribution levels. In addition to employer endorsement effects, both the encouragement of older work colleagues and workplace norms had a role to play in influencing how successfully individuals prepared for retirement.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 108-131
Author(s):  
Melaku Alemu

There are many constraints that severely affect the global agricultural production and productivity which include the ever increasing of population growth, degradation of natural resources, climate changes and emerging pests. Among these factors, biotic constraints or pests are known to cause 25-50% or complete loss of plant production. Accordingly, various plant protection technologies have been deployed with the trend of focusing on the use modern biotechnological tools that are proven to be most effective and mandatory. The review covers a wide array of pest management methods ranging from the conventional biological control methods up to molecular breeding techniques. Furthermore, the application of new genetic engineering techniques fueled by new breakthroughs and innovations are the cornerstone of this review. Accordingly, the continuous increasing trend of GM crops cultivation in both crop type and hectare has urged many countries to deploy the technology as a key strategy to enhance their bioeconomy. In fact, plant protection is the discipline that immensely benefit from biotechnology than any other disciplines for ensuring food security and sustainable development. However, in order to fully exploit the enormous potential of biotechnology, appropriate biosafety regulatory frameworks and proper stewardship programs need to be effectively implemented. This integrated approach can promptly help respond to the ever-dynamic threat of pests and hence reliably combat food insecurity and ably contribute to sustainable development. Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 8(2): 108-131


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document