Year: 2004
Type: article
Abstract: This case study of the Estonian Genome Project (EGP) analyses the Estonian policy decision to construct a national human gene bank. Drawing upon qualitative data from newspaper articles and public policy documents, it focuses on how proponents use discourse to link the EGP to the broader political goal of securing Estonia's position within the Western/European scientific and cultural space. This dominant narrative is then situated within the analytical notion of the "brand state", which raises potentially negative political consequences for this type of market-driven genomic research. Considered against the increasing number of countries engaging in gene bank and/or gene database projects, this analysis of Estonia elucidates issues that cross national boundaries, while also illuminating factors specific to this small, post-Soviet state as it enters the global biocybernetic economy.
Source: New Genetics and Society
Author: Amy L. Fletcher
Institution: University of Canterbury
Language: English
Topic: Race, Genetics, and Society
Subfield: Genetics
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W1995575700