Herding Cats: Responsible Innovation for Sterilizing Cats in New Zealand

Hybrid | GES 508 students apply the Responsible Research and Innovation framework to a hypothetical gene therapy project for cat sterilization supporting New Zealand’s Predator Free 2050 goal. Final GES Colloquium of the semester!

Abstract

Join us for a student-led presentation exploring the Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) framework developed by Stilgoe et al. in a hypothetical scenario. New Zealand has been working towards becoming predator-free to protect its native ecosystem, establishing the ambitious Predator Free 2050 project. At the same time, a team of biologists has been developing a shot that can sterilize cats without the need for costly and time-consuming surgeries, through the usage of a gene therapy that increases Anti-Müllerian hormone levels. Students will explore a hypothetical scenario where this shot is used to help New Zealand work towards its goal of eliminating predators by controlling cat populations. They will frame this scenario through the lens of Responsible Research and Innovation and discuss how this project could be carried out with Anticipation, Reflexivity, Inclusion, and Responsiveness in mind. Using this lens, they will look at the science behind the project, the potential of a sterilization mandate, unexpected ecological side effects, and the logistics needed for such a project. They will conclude on both how this theoretical project should proceed and if the Responsible Research and Innovation framework was a good guiding principle for this project.

GES Colloquium is jointly taught by Drs. Dawn Rodriguez-Ward and Katie Barnhill, who you may contact with any class-specific questions. The Podcast is produced by Patti Mulligan. Colloquium will be held in person in the 1911 Building, room 129, and live-streamed via Zoom.

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