Public Impact

Programs

Public Impact

program Leadership

Melinda Kliegman, Ph.D.
Director, Public Impact

The Public Impact team aligns IGI’s genome-engineering innovations with societal needs and values.

The revolutionary ability to transform agriculture and biomedicine gives rise to new societal and environmental considerations. We strive to understand and shape positive impacts of genome editing on society.

Key Goals

Development: Develop policy and regulatory recommendations that guide responsible governance of genomic technologies

Translation: Generate meaningful dialogue with diverse stakeholder communities and provide free educational resources

Deployment: Increase the global availability of affordable and accessible genomic therapies, agricultural products, and tools

Flagship Projects

Promoting Responsible Governance

The IGI is advancing science policy to ensure genome engineering developments serve the public good.

The Public Impact team engages with policymakers and regulators around the world to establish responsible governance mechanisms.

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Engaging Stakeholders

We facilitate dialogue through outreach to key stakeholders to ensure that genome-editing technology is equitably developed and distributed.

We convene stakeholder communities to discuss applications, risks and benefits. We integrate stakeholder feedback into our research direction to ground our priorities in societal needs.

Gene Editing and Societal Engagement

Improving Equitable Access

Our research creates new paradigms for equitable and affordable applications of genome-editing technologies, including investigating new models of commercialization.

Genetic therapies on the market have list prices over $3 million per dose. An IGI-led task force developed a roadmap to deliver affordable genetic therapies with a focus on the role of mission-driven institutions. We empower scientists in low- and middle-income countries to use CRISPR technology to develop products specific to their own needs.

Affordability Task Force Report

Partnerships

The IGI maximizes its impact around the world by working in close collaboration with a network of global partners in health, climate, and agriculture.

IGI’s formal partnership with the CGIAR

Berkeley Ethics and Regulation Group for Innovative Technologies (BERGIT) — hosted by Kavli Center for Ethics, Science, and the Public

African CRISPR course in partnership with the African Plant Breeding Academy

Accelerating Genomic Therapies with Real-World Evidence, in partnership with ASH Research Collaborative