Framing biosecurity: an alternative to the biotech revolution model?

Abstract

Since 11 September 2001 there is growing national and international policy focus on the increasing threat of bioterrorism. Underpinning this policy focus is a dominant frame of discourse for how to consider biosecurity threats. This paper describes some of the key ideas comprising the dominant biosecurity discourse and contrasts it with an alternative framing of the issues. To illustrate these different frames, it draws on examples from the emerging field of synthetic genomes and other biotechnologies that have generated security concerns. It argues that the current dominant frame takes away attention from other important considerations for assessing the threat from biotechnologies.