Dear ladies and gentelmen,

Gene drives have the potential to circumvent the rules of inheritance in order to quickly and fundamentally alter wild populations of species or to exterminate them altogether. An idea that has long existed, gene drives may soon become reality with the help of new genetic engineering techniques. Gene drives are a technology that raises fundamental ecological, social, ethical and legal questions :

What environmental implications could we face if we were to eliminate populations or species using gene drives ?
What are the consequences of making such attempts if they are unsuccessful ?
Who gets to decide ?
Are the appropriate regulations in place ?
A working group of international scientists, philosophers and legal experts has extensively considered these questions. The outcome of this process will be
presented for discussion at the Gene Drive Symposium.

Please feel free to forward the invitation to interested persons, organisations and colleagues. We are looking forward to your participation.

With kind regards
Hartmut Graßl
Chairman Federation of German Scientists