15 Morningside Road, Edinburgh EH10 4DP, Tel: 0131 447 6394 or 0774 298 4459
31 March 2004
Organisers: Society for Experimental Biology
Venue: Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh
SCHB participant: Dr Calum MacKellar was a member of the 4-person panel
The meeting took the form of a debate with a panel of four experts. The panel members were:
Dr. Tom Wakeford (Chair)
Dr. Wakeford is a biologist and action researcher. For the last few years his work has focused on allowing those who are marginalised from power to have a greater say in decisions that affect their lives. In 2002-3, he led an action research project for the Royal society’s £ 1 million “Science in Society” programme, which ran workshops between scientists and different stakeholders in five meetings stretching from Edinburgh to Norwich on the subject of the place of genetics in healthcare.
Dr. Ian Gibson MP
Dr Ian Gibson attended the University of Edinburgh, where he was awarded a BSc and a PhD. After working in Scotland and in Indiana, where he held a post-doctoral fellowship, he joined the University of East Anglia. At the UEA, Dr. Gibson became the Dean of the School of Biological Sciences and served as head of a 10 strong research team investigating various forms of cancer. In 1997, and again in 2001 he was elected as Member of Parliament for Norwich North. He specialises in science and health issues and chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Cancer and the House of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology. (gave his apologies and was not able to attend because of a vote in parliament)
Prof. Tom Baldwin
Thomas Baldwin is Professor of Philosophy at the University of York. He is a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics and of the UK Stem Cell Bank Steering Committee. He is also Deputy Chair of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.
Dr. Harry Griffin
Harry Griffin BSc, MBA, PhD is currently Acting Director at the Roslin Institute near Edinburgh. A biochemist by training, his initial research career focused on lipid and membrane biochemistry, though more recent work has concentrated on understanding genetic variation in livestock. Much of his time over the last few years has been taken up with dealing with the media fascination will all things cloned and he has been a frequent contributor to ethical discussion and debate in issues ranging from genetic modification to human embryo stem cell research.
Dr. Calum MacKellar
Originally trained as a biochemist, having worked on gene therapy both at Edinburgh University and in industry, Calum MacKellar has, for the past 10 years, been active in bioethics. He was employed within the Bioethics Division of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg for a number of years, returning in 2003 to take up his current position as Director of Research at the Scottish Council on Human Bioethics.