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Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals

The unwarranted interference of some environmental non-governmental organisations (ENGOs) in decision-making over genetically modified (GM) crops has prompted calls for politics to be removed from the regulatory governance of these products. However, regulatory systems are inevitably political becau...

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Autor principal: Raybould, Alan
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Springer International Publishing 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8340810/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34351560
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11248-021-00277-4
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author Raybould, Alan
author_facet Raybould, Alan
author_sort Raybould, Alan
collection PubMed
description The unwarranted interference of some environmental non-governmental organisations (ENGOs) in decision-making over genetically modified (GM) crops has prompted calls for politics to be removed from the regulatory governance of these products. However, regulatory systems are inevitably political because their purpose is to decide whether the use of particular products will help or hinder the delivery of public policy objectives. ENGOs are most able to interfere in regulatory decision-making when policy objectives and decision-making criteria are vague, making the process vulnerable to disruption by organisations that have a distinct agenda. Making regulatory decision-making about GM crops and other green biotechnology more resistant to interference therefore requires better politics not the removal of politics. Better politics begins with political leadership making a case for green biotechnology in achieving food security and other sustainable development goals. Such a policy must involve making political choices and cannot be outsourced to science. Other aspects of better politics include regulatory reform to set policy aims and decision-making criteria that encourage innovation as well as control risk, and engagement with civil society that discusses the values behind attitudes to the application of green biotechnology. In short, green biotechnology for sustainable development needs better politics to counter well-organised opposition, to encourage innovation, and to build the trust of civil society for these policies. Removing politics from regulatory governance would be a gift to ENGOs that are opposed to the use of biotechnology.
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spelling pubmed-83408102021-08-06 Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals Raybould, Alan Transgenic Res Commentary The unwarranted interference of some environmental non-governmental organisations (ENGOs) in decision-making over genetically modified (GM) crops has prompted calls for politics to be removed from the regulatory governance of these products. However, regulatory systems are inevitably political because their purpose is to decide whether the use of particular products will help or hinder the delivery of public policy objectives. ENGOs are most able to interfere in regulatory decision-making when policy objectives and decision-making criteria are vague, making the process vulnerable to disruption by organisations that have a distinct agenda. Making regulatory decision-making about GM crops and other green biotechnology more resistant to interference therefore requires better politics not the removal of politics. Better politics begins with political leadership making a case for green biotechnology in achieving food security and other sustainable development goals. Such a policy must involve making political choices and cannot be outsourced to science. Other aspects of better politics include regulatory reform to set policy aims and decision-making criteria that encourage innovation as well as control risk, and engagement with civil society that discusses the values behind attitudes to the application of green biotechnology. In short, green biotechnology for sustainable development needs better politics to counter well-organised opposition, to encourage innovation, and to build the trust of civil society for these policies. Removing politics from regulatory governance would be a gift to ENGOs that are opposed to the use of biotechnology. Springer International Publishing 2021-08-05 2021 /pmc/articles/PMC8340810/ /pubmed/34351560 http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11248-021-00277-4 Text en © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021 This article is made available via the PMC Open Access Subset for unrestricted research re-use and secondary analysis in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic.
spellingShingle Commentary
Raybould, Alan
Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals
title Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals
title_full Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals
title_fullStr Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals
title_full_unstemmed Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals
title_short Improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals
title_sort improving the politics of biotechnological innovations in food security and other sustainable development goals
topic Commentary
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8340810/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34351560
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11248-021-00277-4
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