In recent years, the media have increased the public's awareness of the environmental and health dimensions of cultivating and consuming GM crops, often uncritically reporting results of controversial studies. Emotionally charged terms such as "frankenfoods," "super weeds," and "genetic pollution" have entered the discussion and the popular vocabulary.
We believe that it is critically important for plant scientists to be actively involved in educating the public, including legislators, about the scientific issues that involve GM technology. We have an obligation to help people understand the reasoning behind scientific research and genetic technology. As scientists, we need to consider the complexity of issues involved from the points of view of history, politics, culture, ecology, safety, environment, and business. Some of our colleagues are actively involved in these educational processes. We wanted to put into a broader framework our daily work in the laboratory and our discussions with opponents of genetic modification of crop plants. In some cases opponents of the technology have resorted to criminal activities, resulting not only in destruction of field trials - often of non-GM plants - but also in incidents of arson of research facilities. Graduate students have had their materials destroyed as a result of such activities. Many of our readers are in the "trenches" of these confrontations, and we believe it is extremely important that the voices of prominent scientists be heard, not only by the general public and politicians, but also by plant biologists.
-Natasha Raikhel, Editor-in-Chief of Plant Physiology
We believe that it is critically important for plant scientists to be actively involved in educating the public, including legislators, about the scientific issues that involve GM technology. We have an obligation to help people understand the reasoning behind scientific research and genetic technology. As scientists, we need to consider the complexity of issues involved from the points of view of history, politics, culture, ecology, safety, environment, and business. Some of our colleagues are actively involved in these educational processes. We wanted to put into a broader framework our daily work in the laboratory and our discussions with opponents of genetic modification of crop plants. In some cases opponents of the technology have resorted to criminal activities, resulting not only in destruction of field trials - often of non-GM plants - but also in incidents of arson of research facilities. Graduate students have had their materials destroyed as a result of such activities. Many of our readers are in the "trenches" of these confrontations, and we believe it is extremely important that the voices of prominent scientists be heard, not only by the general public and politicians, but also by plant biologists.
-Natasha Raikhel, Editor-in-Chief of Plant Physiology
