Friends Of Action Group On Erosion Technology And Concentration Inc

Programs: Friends of etc group works toward the goals outlined in its mission largely through educational activities and by supporting the work of action group on erosion, technology and concentration (etc group), a charitable organization headquartered in canada, and by supporting the work of other organizations aligned with its charitable and educational aims. In fy16/17, friends of etc group continued its double focus on the very small and the very large that is, advocacy and education related to sustainable, smallholder food production on the one hand; and, on the other hand, educating the public and policymakers about new technologies with potentially dramatic and large-scale social, economic and environmental effects (for example, synthetic biology and geoengineering). Over the last several years, friends of etc group has broadened its support of etc groups research to assess the potential threat of synthetic biology on agriculture and has provided targeted support for additional, case-study research on the potential impact of synthetic biologys production techniques including the use of so-called gene drives on agricultural production by smallholder farmers. Friends of etc group has built on the success of that work with continued public support with a grant from the greater cedar rapids community foundation. That grant is helping etc group establish a public database to track commercial products that have been produced using synthetic biology techniques; those products are intended to compete with and potentially supplant natural products already on the market, most of which are grown and harvested by small farmers and rural workers. The group of organizations with which friends of etc group and etc group have collaborated for more than a decade, known as the maize network, continued its education and engagement activities throughout the fiscal year. With the support of friends of etc group, ceccam, a maize network and not-for-profit organization based in mexico, continued to work to maintain that countrys prohibition on the planting and commercialization of transgenic corn. As mexico is the center of origin and diversity of maize, it is crucial to work toward protection of that diversity for the benefit of current and future generations. With the financial and technical support of friends of etc group, etc group was able to advance its longstanding work to facilitate participatory technology assessment. With targeted grant funds from the marin community foundation, etc group, with its international partners, launched a technology assessment platform (tap) in both latin america and the asia-pacific regions. Grant funds from the marin community foundation also allowed friends of etc group to participate in the united nations multi-stakeholder forum on science, technology and innovation for the sustainable development goals (new york, may 15-16, 2017). At that meeting, friends of etc group board member hope shand advocated for etc groups g. O. A. T. S. Proposal a global overview assessment of technological systems. G. O. A. T. S. Offers an exploratory approach for policymakers, civil society and others to better perceive and navigate the innovation landscape ahead and to understand the potential promises and pitfalls of rapidly developing technologies in advance of their introduction.