Over the years, PGED has organized a number of Congressional briefings, hosted by Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, Senator Elizabeth Warren, and Congressman Bill Foster. These “lunch-and-learn” briefings engage policymakers on the rapidly developing field of personal genetics and the importance of education and dialogue. Attendees from both sides of the aisle have packed the room for our briefings to discuss scientific and societal issues related to the use of emerging genetic technologies. Topics have included precision medicine, gene editing, ancestry, Ebola, microbial genomics, forensics, non-invasive prenatal testing, space genetics, and DNA nanotechnology.
Through an informational approach, the briefings foster discourse between policymakers and the genomics community, rather than advocacy for a particular position or policy.
- First Congressional Briefing: “Personal Genetics: Scientific Advances & Accelerating Public Awareness”
- Second Congressional Briefing: “Advances in Personal Genetics and GINA: Expanding Options and Protecting Civil Rights”
- Third Congressional Briefing: “Personal Genetics and Law Enforcement: Improving Public Safety, Ensuring Justice, and Balancing Civil Rights”
- Fourth Congressional Briefing: “Gene Editing and Frontiers in Genetic Technologies: Innovations, Impacts, and Implications”
- Fifth Congressional Briefing: “Enduring the Extremes: Space Travel, Genetics, and Astronaut Health”
- Sixth Congressional Briefing: “The Common Thread: What Genetics Tells Us About Ancestry, Health, and Personal Identity”