News & Stories

Genetics debate will launch Citizens’ Jury series

A new, global series of projects aimed at developing inclusive social policies and generating broad community conversations begins this weekend at the Museum of Australian Democracy in Canberra.  

The Australian project, using a Citizens’ Jury, is led by the University of Tasmania’s Centre for Law and Genetics and the University of Canberra’s Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance.  A Citizens’ Jury is a mechanism that brings together a group of ordinary people who work together to provide a reasoned and insightful response to a complex issue. The issue that the Citizens’ Jury will deliberate on this weekend is genome editing. 

The Citizens’ Jury approach was sparked by a paper co-authored by Professor Dianne Nicol, Director of the Law School’s Centre for Law and Genetics. It aims to provide a mechanism to reflect community attitudes towards complex questions. 

Genome editing may be used in the prevention of conditions such as sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis and some forms of cancer. However, concerns exist about the potential for it be used to produce so-called designer babies, amongst other concerns.

“It is well recognised globally that in novel and contentious areas such as this it is equally as important to hear from ordinary members of the public as it is to hear from experts,” said Professor Nicol. 

“The Citizens’ Jury gives members of the public the opportunity to meaningfully reflect and deliberate on the complexities of the science and the ethical, legal and social issues it raises,” she said.

The jury is the first of a series to be held around the world, culminating in a global citizens’ assembly in Athens. It has been put together by a group of researchers led by Professor Nicol and Professor Simon Niemeyer, head of Australia’s Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance at the University of Canberra, joined by his colleagues Professors Nicole Curato and John Dryzek.

The project is funded by the Medical Research Futures Fund Genomic Health Futures Mission.

Project website: https://www.australiancitizensjury.org/

Paper details: Global Citizen Deliberation on Genome Editing
https://science.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi/10.1126/science.abb5931