The Governance of Genetic Information: Who Decides?

This volume maps the areas of ethical concern in the debate regarding the governance of genetic information, and suggests alternative ethical frameworks and models of regulation in order to inform its restructuring. Genetic governance is at the heart of medical and scientific developments, and is connected to global exploitation, issues of commodification, commercialisation and ownership, the concepts of property and intellectual property and concerns about individual and communal identity. Thus the decisions that are made in the next few years about appropriate models of genetic governance will have knock-on effects for other areas of governance. In short the final answer to 'Who Decides?' in the context of genetic governance will fundamentally shape the ethical constructs of individuals and their networks and relationships in the public sphere.

Heather Widdows is professor of Global Ethics at the University of Birmingham, where she teaches moral Philosophy and bioethics. Caroline Mullen is a research officer at the Centre for European Law and Legal studies, school of Law, University of Leeds.