Comparing methods of ethical consultation for biotechnology related issues.

sultation event conducted as part of the Democracy, Ethics, and Genomics: Consultation, Deliberation and Modelling [DEG] project at the W. Maurice Young Centre for Applied Ethics [CAE] at the University of British Columbia [UBC]. The all day event took place in Vancouver, British Columbia on Saturday, September 24, 2005. The DEG project, funded by both Genome Canada and Genome BC, compares two methods of “ethical analysis for the development of public policy in the area of genomics.” 2 Primary Investiator Dr. Mike Burgess leads a team conducting focus groups with various publics in order to identify the “moral dimensions and perspectives of issues raised by participants.” Dr. Peter Danielson leads the Norms Evolving in Response to Dilemmas [NERD] team, which uses web–based surveys in their research. These surveys typically include twelve questions that support deliberative decision-making by providing participants with access to five advisors who offer scientific, policy, ethical, and pro and con advocate advice.