Consortium Introduction
The Consortium conducts original research, serves students and faculty, and advances public dialogue and understanding on emerging issues at the intersection of science and society.
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Health Law, Ethics & Policy
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Environment, Agriculture & Food
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Emerging Technologies
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Public Health & Biosecurity
Latest News
Chainbreaker Bike Ride Raises Money for Cancer Research
August 15, 2017
On August 12th and 13th, 1000 cyclists raised more than $1 million during the first-ever Chainbreaker ride, sponsored by Consortium member the Masonic Cancer Center (MCC). Routes were in increments of 25, 50, 100 and 180 miles, and wound through the south and west metro; those riding longer distances connected with the Cannon Valley Trail and eventually ended up in Excelsior. 400 volunteers supported the riders, helping with logistics, providing food and beverages, and cheering on participants. MCC Director Douglas Yee and his wife, Janet Yee, rode their tandem bike the entire 180 miles, raising more than $8000 between the two of them. Chainbreaker is modeled after a very successful event founded at Ohio State University, which has raised $130 million dollars for cancer research in the past 8 years, including $20 million dollars last year alone. Next year's Minnesota Chainbreaker is planned for summer, 2018.
Leigh Turner: Stem Cell Clinics Often Oversell Their Services
August 14, 2017
Prof. Leigh Turner, a faculty member at the Center for Bioethics (a Consortium member), is in the news for his expose of pay-to-participate stem cell studies listed on ClinicalTrials.gov. An article in the Star Tribune outlines the controversy, which has heated up in the aftermath of a Regenerative Medicine paper by Turner in which he questions the legitimacy of many of these trials. According to Turner, "You have these businesses that don’t have meaningful clinical research going on. There is a risk for fraud, in that people may be charged thousands of dollars to get an intervention that has no chance of working." In particular, Turner is concerned about the appearance of a government endorsement, since ClinicalTrials.gov is run by the Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA). Representatives of some of the companies Turner named have threatened litigation, though no suits have been filed. One cosmetic surgeon quoted in the Star Tribune article refutes Turner's argument: "We are not taking public funding and using it to our benefit while pursuing 'scientific' excellence — we’re actually trying to help our patients while learning about the treatments and the disease they have. Frankly, I think this is much more ethical than a major university with billions of endowment dollars taking millions of dollars of taxpayer money so they can build new offices and laboratories to further the study of stem cells."
Prof. Francis X. Shen Named McKnight Presidential Fellow
August 10, 2017
Consortium affiliate faculty member Francis X. Shen, JD, PhD, has been named a 2017-19 McKnight Presidential Fellow. This fellowship program is targeted at the University of Minnesota’s most promising faculty who have been newly granted tenure and promotion to associate professor; it recognizes their scholarly accomplishments and supports their ongoing research and scholarship with supplemental funding for a three-year period. In his research and teaching, Prof. Shen examines the increasingly important intersection of law and the brain sciences. His work is aimed at delineating the principles by which cognitive neuroscience should—and should not—be embraced by courts and legislatures. Shen joined the Law School faculty in 2012, and also serves as executive director of education and outreach for the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Law and Neuroscience.
Gulf "Dead Zone" Highlights Downstream Effects of Polluted Water from the Upper Midwest
August 7, 2017
Improving water quality throughout Minnesota has been the focus of ongoing efforts by organizations like the Water Resources Center (WRC), a Consortium member. An article from Minnesota Public Radio lays out potential solutions, referring to a recent report by the WRC "that recommends strategies like better regulation of farm drainage systems and moving away from planting corn and soybeans to perennial crops." Fertilizers like nitrogen and phosphorus from Midwestern farm fields wash into the Mississippi River and other watersheds, causing contamination. Road salt and golf course runoff are also among the culprits. One dramatic outcome is this summer's largest-ever "dead zone" downstream in the Gulf of Mexico, an area the size of New Jersey "where water doesn't have enough oxygen for fish to survive," according to NPR. Don Scavia, a researcher at the University of Michigan, "describes it as a kind of hidden environmental disaster. 'You know, it's 8,000 square miles of no oxygen. That can't be good!'" One example of an effective solution that Scavia points to is mandatory limits on nutrient pollution in Chesapeake Bay, which have helped the bay begin to recover since being put in place in 2010.
Updates
Job Opportunity: Associate Director of Research
The Consortium is seeking a highly qualified individual to collaborate on research, publication, and educational activities on the legal, ethical, and societal implications of biomedicine and the life sciences. Current funded projects focus on genomics, precision medicine, and emerging technologies. This full-time position reports to the Consortium Chair, Prof. Susan M. Wolf and works with colleagues across the University. Applicants must have completed a JD, PhD or other relevant degree; present an outstanding record of research and publication; demonstrate clear potential for continued scholarly excellence and accomplishment; show outstanding written and verbal communication skills; bring a high level of organizational and computer skills; and show a demonstrated capacity to work well in a collaborative environment to accomplish scholarly and interdisciplinary goals. A complete job description can be found here.
Connect with the Consortium
The Consortium offers educational events, original research, grants and news about our member centers and like-minded colleagues at the University of Minnesota and beyond, as well as making most of our lectures and conferences available for free, public access. The best way to find out about these offerings is to like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter. Connect with us today!
Frontiers in Research Ethics
On March 8-9, the Consortium hosted two conferences on informed consent, featuring nationally-known speakers. The first of them, The Future of Informed Consent in Research and Translational Medicine, focused on how informed consent ethics and policy have developed over the past century, and what tools are needed to improve patient and research participant protections going forward. The second, The Challenges of Informed Consent in Research with Children, Adolescents and Adults, analyzed approaches to seeking consent from adults with diminished capacity; community-based participatory research; and pediatric assent and guardian permission. The latter conference kicked off the first-ever Research Ethics Day at the University of Minnesota, and concluded with trainings and workshops the afternoon of March 9. Videos of the conferences will be posted on this website within the next two weeks. You can view videos of all the conference sessions here.