Assuredly yes, it is time for synthetic biology to be incorporated into the twenty-first century toolkit for biodiversity conservation. Prompted by pressing biodiversity concerns, an influential group of scientists and conservationists...
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By Ben J. Novak At the 2016 North American Ornithology Conference (NAOC) held this August in Washington D.C., Heath Hen de-extinction project leaders Ben Novak and Jeff Johnson organized and facilitated an...
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By Ben J. Novak On September 3, and 4, 2016, Revive & Restore participated in the IUCN World Conservation Congress. Revive & Restore cofounder Ryan Phelan convened two sessions on the potential role biotechnology could play in conservation. The 2016 congress was the largest in the 68-year history of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, with nearly 10,000 registered participants. It was also the first held in the United States. The setting was Hawaii, sometimes labeled “the extinction capital of the world.” Few places have more urgency to introduce new tools for saving species and ecosystems. The goal…
Summary | Stamping Our Mosquitoes | Genetic Rescue About the Congress Press Release Meeting Report Keynote Speaker Frequently Asked Questions NAS Gene Drive Report Pavilion Event / "Stamping Out Mosquitoes"...
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By Ben J. Novak I returned from Taipei, Taiwan today after attending the Avian Model Systems 9 meeting and taking a week-long tour of the spectacular sights of Taroko Gorge, Hualien, and Alishan to reflect on the mass of information presented. Being in the wilderness is certainly the best way to digest new ideas for applying new science innovations to conservation. The Avian Model Systems meeting is a unique conference of scientists striving to make birds the best model organisms possible for many avenues of research. Often, non-avian models are unsuitable to study a particular phenomenon, such as the study of…
Revive & Restore has set out to expand conservation practice by demonstrating how new genomic tools can be applied to a variety of serious wildlife problems that have proved unsolvable by traditional means. Working with dozens of scientists, we are participating in 12 such projects—7 initiated by us. Of the 12 projects, 6 aim to prevent extinction of endangered species (genetic rescue), 5 attempt to reverse extinction in ecologically important species (de-extinction), and 1 hopes to cure a devastating human ailment (Lyme disease) by tweaking its wildlife reservoir. That may seem like too much for a tiny nonprofit to take…
Ben Novak and Paul Marini The biggest challenges facing The Great Passenger Pigeon Comeback will be obtaining germ cell cultures, engineering cells and birds), and then breeding and raising passenger pigeons that will survive and flourish in the wild. The underlying element to these challenges is handling live birds. As our project now is completing genome sequences and beginning to assess the mutations we will engineer into living band-tailed pigeons we face our biggest obstacle – establishing a research flock of pigeons for the purpose of recreating the passenger pigeons. Mid- 2014 our project gained a new advisor and project…
By Ben J. Novak We are frequently asked by students what education pathway should they pursue to develop a career in next generation conservation – such as biotech-based genetic rescue and de-extinction projects. Currently there are no education programs in the world that are designed for this kind of specialty, but any university with relatively customizable biology, genetics, and conservation science major programs can be tailored for a future in this line of work. Next generation conservation projects using biotech and genomics will be a highly interdisciplinary field, offering work for people with many specialties. It helps to decide early…
Revive & Restore was pleased to host Beth Shapiro for a presentation on her book How to Clone a Mammoth on Monday May 11, 2015 at the Marines’ Memorial Theater at Union Square, San Francisco, CA. This lecture was presented as part of The Long Now Foundation’s monthly Seminars About Long-term Thinking. How to Clone a Mammoth Monday May 11, 02015 – San Francisco Audio is available on the How to Clone a Mammoth page, or you can subscribe to The Long Now Foundation’s podcast. De-extinction science A summary by Stewart Brand When people hear about “ancient DNA” in fossils, Shapiro began, the first question always is “Can…
-By Stewart Brand This article was published on April 21, 2015 in Aeon. The idea that we are edging up to a mass extinction is not just wrong – it’s a recipe for panic and paralysis Stewart Brand is president of the Long Now Foundation and co-founder of Revive and Restore. He edited the Whole Earth Catalog (1968-74) and his latest book is Whole Earth Discipline (2010). The way the public hears about conservation issues is nearly always in the mode of ‘[Beloved Animal] Threatened With Extinction’. That makes for electrifying headlines, but it misdirects concern. The loss of whole…
