International Bioethics Links

Asia / Australia / Canada / Europe / UK / USA / International Sites

Asia

Asia Asian Bioethics Association (ABA)

The objective of this Association is to promote scientific research in bioethics in Asia through open and international exchanges of ideas among those working in bioethics in various fields of study and different regions of the world.

The association is holding a Biotechnology, Culture, and Human Values in Asia and Beyond conference, March 19-23, 2007, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Eubios Ethics Institute

The Eubios Ethics Institute is a nonprofit group, based in Japan, that aims to stimulate the international discussion of ethical issues, and how technology we may use in ways consistent with "good life" (eu-bios). It aims at an integrated and cross-cultural approach to bioethics, and at building up an international network.

Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics (EJAIB)

EJAIB is the official journal of the Asian Bioethics Association (ABA) and the International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS) Bioethics Program.

Australia

Australasian Bioethics Association

Formed in 1991, the association aims to:

• Promote the study of bioethics in Australasia.
• Provide a public forum for debate and discussion of bioethics.
• Promote awareness of bioethics and bioethical issues in the community, among all those involved in health care and related disciplines.

Centre of Human Bioethics, Monash University

The aims of the Centre for Human Bioethics are:

• To carry out research on issues in human bioethics and to promote study of the ethical, social and legal problems arising out of medical and biological research.
• To provide an advisory and resource centre for government, professional, educational and community groups.
• To stimulate the development of educational programs in human bioethics for professionals and the public. The Centre has carried out research projects on many different topics, including: new methods of reproduction and their consequences; embryo experimentation; and a virtue-ethics approach to bioethics.

Centre for Law and Genetics

The Centre is based at the Schools of Law at the Universities of Tasmania and Melbourne. Its mission is to provide excellence in research for the benefit of the Australian and International communities into the legal and ethical issues arising from the developments in genetic technology and to propose effective and equitable means for developing, applying and benefit-sharing of this technology.

National Health and Medical Research Council

The Council provides independent advice on all aspects of health and health care delivery in Australia. This is done by managing the complementary functions of funding health and medical research, providing ethical guidance on health and medical research issues, and providing health advice. The latter is done by publishing guidelines, information papers and pamphlets on a range of health issues throughout the health and general communities, drawing on the best of expert advice and ensuring that the published advice is both current and relevant for the Australian community.

Office of the Gene Technology Regulator

The Office of the Gene Technology Regulator was established within the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing to provide administrative support to the Gene Technology Regulator in the performance of her functions under the Gene Technology Act 2000. The Gene Technology Act 2000, introduces a national scheme for the regulation of genetically modified organisms in Australia, in order to protect the health and safety of Australians and the Australian environment by identifying risks posed by or as a result of gene technology, and to manage those risks by regulating certain dealings with genetically modified organisms.

Southern Cross Bioethics Institute

The Institute has the task of analysing in depth the urgent ethical issues which arise in aged care in particular, and human health and life, in general. It is involved in the research and discussion of critical bioethical issues at the local South Australian level, but more often its consultation and advice are sought from around Australia and at an international level. The Institute is seen by many as a valuable resource, providing up-to-date, relevant and accessible information and advice to community groups, political parties and Churches on a wide range of bioethical issues. It has also provided expert comments and submissions to governments, research committees and international forums.

Canada

Canadian Biotechnology Advisory Committee

The Canadian Biotechnology Advisory Committee (CBAC) was established by the Government of Canada. CBAC provides comprehensive advice on current policy issues associated with the ethical, social, regulatory, economic, scientific, environmental and health aspects of biotechnology. It is also tasked with providing Canadians with easy-to-understand information on biotechnology issues, and providing opportunities for Canadians to voice their views on the matters on which CBAC is offering advice to the Government. The Committee has researched areas such as GM foods and ethics in biotechnology.

University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics

This Centre is a partnership between the University of Toronto and affiliated hospitals. It studies important ethical, health-related topics through research and clinical activities. It has published papers on human rights in the biotechnology era; xenotransplantation and cloning; stem cell transplantation; and genetic testing.

Democracy, Ethics and Genomics

The objective of the Democracy, Ethics and Genomics project is to devise and evaluate methods of ethical analysis for the development of public policy in the area of genomics.

Europe

European Bioethical Research

This is an international, non profit organisation based in Edinburgh, Scotland that encourages and promotes research and discussion in bioethics amongst academics and has a programme to increase and improve the public understanding of bioethics through small grants. This website is a good source of European and International bioethics links.

European Bioethics Bodies

An excellent source of links to the National Ethics Committees in Europe from the "Europa - The European Union On-Line" website.

The Nordic Committee on Bioethics

The Nordic Committee on Bioethics was formed out of the "Nordic Committee on Ethics" (set up in 1989 by the Nordic Council of Ministers in connection with a Nordic collaborative project on biotechnology).

Reasons for Nordic cooperation on bioethics are:

• Ethical issues within biotechnology and genetic engineering are important topics today and in the future.
• The Nordic region has common cultural and ethical considered opinions which it is important to abide by.
• This requires the exchange of information, interdisciplinary cooperation and joint conferences.
• It is important to insist on shared Nordic values in dealings with the Council of Europe and the EU.

United Kingdom

Bioethics, Journal of the International Association of Bioethics

Bioethics provides a forum for well-argued articles on the ethical questions raised by current issues such as: international collaborative clinical research in developing countries, organ transplants and xenotransplantation, ageing and the human lifespan, AIDS, the Human Genome Project and its implications, and embryonic stem cell research. Bioethics also features regular background briefings on important current debates in the field. These feature articles provide excellent material for bioethics scholars, teachers and students. The Journal web pages (inside the Blackwell Publishing website) provide background information on the Journal; lists of the contents of current and past journals; and subscription information.

Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) was set up in the UK in 1991. It ensures that all UK treatment clinics offering in vitro fertilisation (IVF) or donor insemination (DI), or storing eggs, sperm or embryos, conform to high medical and professional standards and are inspected regularly. It collects comprehensive data about such treatments, and provides detailed advice and information to the public. The HFEA also licenses and monitors all human embryo research, supervising controlled research for the benefit of humankind. The Authority must consider the ethical implications of a number of key issues, and always take accounts of the national debate which these often stimulate.

Human Genetics Commission

HGC is the UK Government's advisory body on how new developments in human genetics will impact on people and on health care. Its role is to give Ministers strategic advice on the 'big picture' of human genetics, with a particular focus on social and ethical issues. The Commission has set up several working groups that are looking or have looked into topics including: genetic testing; genetics and reproduction; and storage, protection and use of genetic information.

Nuffield Council on Bioethics

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics is an independent body established by the Trustees of the Nuffield Foundation in 1991 to consider the ethical issues arising from developments in medicine and biology. The Council has investigated areas such as the ethics of xenotransplantation; the ethical and social issues concerning genetically modified crops; and the ethical issues surrounding stem cell therapy.

United States

The American Journal of Bioethics

The American Journal of Bioethics (AJOB) provides a rapid, peer-reviewed collection of scholarship about emerging issues in bioethics. AJOB is an authoritative forum for the discussion of new developments in the whole range of questions in bioethics. Each quarterly issue features a target article accompanied by twenty peer commentaries, as well as a response to the peer commentary by the target author. Regular news updates, in depth features )on issues such as cloning and genetics) and live bioethics events are provided on this website.

American Society for Bioethics and Humanities

The American Society for Bioethics and Humanities (ASBH) is a professional society of more than 1,500 individuals, organizations, and institutions interested in bioethics and humanities. Their website serves as a source of information for members, prospective members, and anyone interested in bioethics and humanities. The Exploratorium, San Francisco, CA - ETHEX The Exploratorium's Ethical Scenarios Forum (ETHEX) was an Internet listserv developed for the Exploratorium exhibition "Diving Into the Gene Pool" beginning in April, 1995. With the cooperation of members of the International Bioethics Institute, Exploratorium staff, visitors, and remote users discussed topics around the ethical, legal, and social implications of the Human Genome Project and other genetics topics. The forum is no longer running however the scenarios and comments archive make for thought provoking reading. ETHEX was designed to offer an opportunity for members of the general public to converse openly with each other and with professionals in the fields of ethics, genetics, law, theology, sociology, medicine, etc. Concerns of public policy and private decision-making in that time of dramatic unfolding of scientific discovery and biotechnology was the focus of these discussions.

Center for Practical Bioethics

The Center for Practical Bioethics has a 20 year history of raising and responding to ethical issues in health and healthcare.

The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity

The center was founded by leading Christian bioethicists to promote and provide Christian engagement in the arena of bioethics. It helps individuals and organisations address current bioethical challenges, including managed care, end-of-life treatment, genetic intervention, euthanasia and suicide, and reproductive technologies from a Christian perspective.

The Hastings Center

The Hastings Center is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit bioethics research institute founded in 1969 to explore fundamental and emerging questions in health care, biotechnology, and the environment. Recent topics of research range from genetic paternity testing to newborn screening to palliative care.

Genetics & Public Policy Center

A source of information about public policy related to human genetic technologies.

Neiswanger Institute for Bioethics & Health Policy

The Neiswanger Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy is dedicated to the three-fold mission of research, education, and service. The Institute serves the students, faculty, healthcare professionals, patients from across the nation.

United States Department of Health and Human Sciences Bioethics Resources on the Net

This website is a good source of bioethics related web links. The listed resources provide background information and various positions on issues in bioethics.

University sites

Medical College of Wisconsin's Center for the Study of Bioethics

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine Center for Bioethics

University of Minnesota Centre for Bioethics

Princeton Bioethics Forum, Bioethics Links

International Sites

World Health Organization - ethics & health

World Health organisation - ethics, trade, human rights, and health law

International Association of Bioethics

The Association has the following educational and scientific objectives: To facilitate contacts and the exchange of information between those working in bioethics in different parts of the world; to organise and promote periodic international conferences in bioethics; to encourage the development of research and teaching in bioethics; to uphold the value of free, open and reasoned discussion of issues in bioethics.

United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation International Bioethics Committee

The IBC's role is to keep abreast of progress in genetics, whilst at the same time taking care to ensure respect for the values of human dignity and freedom in view of the potential risks of irresponsible attitudes in biomedical research.

Weblogs

Bioethics & sport

News digests

• BioNews, a free weekly email news digest of the top stories in assisted reproduction and human genetics.
• BioEdge, a free weekly email news digest on health bioethics.
• Agnet, a daily digest of stories relating to food and agriculture.

Yahoo News

• Biotechnology and Genetics
• Cloning
• Gene Therapy
• Genetically Modified Food Debate
• Human Stem Cell Research

Google Groups Search Engine

• Search here under bioethics related key words for newsgroup postings on those topics and/or
• Click on the links to post and read comments in the appropriate Usenet discussion forums eg: alt.bio.technology or sci.bio.technology.