First Nation-Wide Citizen Consensus Conference on Genetic Testing

Funded by:The Deutsches Hygiene-Museum Foundation in Dresden
Duration: 2001

In fall 2001, the Deutsches Hygiene-Museum organized the first nationwide Citizens' Conference: Genetic Diagnostics as a Case of Conflict [Bürgerkonferenz: Streitfall Gendiagnostik]. During the consensus conference, citizens dealt intensively with the advantages and disadvantages of genetic diagnostics and discussed the technology, its consequences, possible fears and hopes with scientists. The 19-member group used an opinion-forming process lasting several weeks to draft a joint assessment of the opportunities and risks of genetic diagnostics.