Todd Is a senior research scholar and executive committee member at NC states genetic engineering and society center. His work explores the scientific and technological frontier, stimulating discovery and bringing new tools to bear on public policy challenges that emerge as science advances.

He has been appointed to the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) technical and policy task force on synthetic biology and gene drives, which culminated in the first comprehensive assessment of the impacts of synthetic biology and gene drives on conservation. In 2020, he was appointed to the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity’s Ad-Hoc-Technical Expert Group (AHTEG) on synthetic biology.

Todd plays a very active role at iGEM, as a long time judge and by serving as the co-chair of its sustainable development goals program and as the former co-chair of the human practices program.

In todays episode we discuss:

-Bringing the iGEM SDG working group to life.

-The first few questions iGEMers should ask themselves when trying to develop an SDG project.

-The intense, controversial and hopeful conversations taking place at the UN and within the convention of biological diversity.