Debate on Green Genetic Engineering
More productive plants to combat the hunger in the world? Plants that protect themselves against insects? Robust plant types that defy climate change? Genetic engineering promises to make all of this possible. Thanks to the discovery of genetic “scissors” like CRISPR/Cas9, plant breeding is currently experiencing a revolution, for the method is fast, precise, and significantly less expensive than previous methods. But how exactly do genetic scissors work? What new plant types can be cultivated through genome editing? And are the new breeding methods really suited to making more precise interventions? Do we need new regulations to minimize the risks to our health and the environment?

Live-Debate with:
Jens Boch, Institute of Plant Genetics, Leibniz University Hannover
Thomas Rippel, Biofarmer, Switzerland
Sarah Bechtold, Institut Technik-Theologie-Naturwissenschaften, München