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Anne R. Kapuscinski, Ph.D. is a Professor of Fisheries and of Conservation Biology, the founding Director of the Institute for Social, Economic and Ecological Sustainability (ISEES) and an Extension Specialist in Aquaculture and Biotechnology at the University of Minnesota, U.S.A. She is an international authority on the ecological risks of genetically engineered organisms, the connection between science and biosafety policies, and genetically engineered fish and other aquatic organisms. Presently she serves on the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture's Advisory Committee on Agricultural Biotechnology (ACAB). In 1997, the Secretary awarded Dr. Kapuscinski the Department of Agriculture's highest individual honor (Secretary Honor Award) for promoting sound public policies on biotechnology in aquaculture and on conservation of genetic diversity in fish. As a member of the interdisciplinary Scientists' Working Group on Biosafety, she co-authored the Manual for Assessing Ecological and Human Health Effects of Genetically Engineered Organisms, that has been sought world wide by public interest groups, government agencies, biotechnology companies and research scientists. This Manual went through an independent, double blind scientific peer review and can be downloaded at www.edmonds-institute.org. Dr. Kapuscinski leads an ISEES initiative on governance of biotechnology, a molecular genetics lab that studies effects of fisheries and aquaculture on genetic diversity of wild fish populations, and an ISEES program on organic aquaculture. As Associate Director of Minnesota's MacArthur Interdisciplinary Program on Global Change, Sustainability, and Justice, Dr. Kapuscinski coordinates graduate training on environment-society problems in third world settings. She co-authored the world's first scientific papers explaining the need to thoroughly assess the ecological risks of genetically engineered fish and identifying major gaps in U.S. biotechnology regulations and the American Fisheries Society 1990 position statement calling for great caution in development and regulation of transgenic fish. As chair of a U.S. Department of Agriculture working group on aquatic biotechnology, she led over 100 scientists government staff, and representatives of environmental groups and biotechnology companies in the development of the world's first risk assessment guidelines for genetically modified fish and shellfish. Dr. Kapuscinski has written 47 peer-reviewed publications and over 30 additional scientific reports. She has testified extensively before committees of the U.S. Congress and the Minnesota State Legislature. Many reporters have interviewed Kapuscinski for newspaper articles and radio and TV programs on biotechnology issues. Dr. Kapuscinski has a B.A. in Biology from Swarthmore College (1976) and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Fisheries (aquaculture, genetics) from Oregon State University (1980, 1984). |
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