To be or not be a GMO, that is the question. | Stefan Jansson | TEDxUmeå

Genetically modified (GM) plants is a sensitive issue, despite the fact that scientific data has shown that they are no more or no less risky for human health or the environment than those that we eat today. Yet, the legislation makes it in reality forbidden to use them in the EU. If there are laws that prohibits the use of GM plants, one may think that it should be possible to define what a GM plant is. The lecture will explain how advances in biology has taken away the borderline between GM and ”non-GM” plants."

He is professor in Plant Cell- and Molecular Biology at Umeå Plant Science Centre/Umeå University. In his research he studies on one hand how plants harvest sunlight and use it in photosynthesis, and on the other hand use genetics and genomics to study natural variation in trees, in particular how trees know that it is autumn. He is member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and takes often part in the public debate, for example on GMOs.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx