Strategies for Interdisciplinary Human Gene Editing Research: Insights from a Swiss ProjectCRISPR gene editing is a cutting-edge technology that has advanced tremendously in recent years. The first clinical CRISPR applications have been approved, and more gene editing therapies are to be expected in human medicine. Consequently, continuous basic research is needed to assess possibilities and prime future clinical applications. Because this technology not only offers new possibilities for treating diseases but also raises important ethical and societal questions, collaboration between human, life, biomedical, and medical sciences is needed. In this article, we discuss the practical challenges of such interdisciplinary projects and present strategies for addressing them based on our experience of conducting an interdisciplinary project on CRISPR. This work aims to help and encourage interdisciplinary collaborations and discussions on modern scientific endeavors that, such as gene editing, tend to blur the lines between traditional disciplines. The strategies suggested include realistic expectations, shared goals, space setting, and expert and lay dialogue.
Navigating FemTech app regulation in Switzerland: Challenges and opportunities from a public health perspectiveThis article examines the Swiss legal framework governing FemTech applications (apps), particularly those dedicated to fertility tracking. It explores the challenges and opportunities associated with regulating these apps from a public health perspective, oriented towards the health of the collectivity rather than that of individuals alone. While these technologies hold great potential, they also raise various critical concerns. Against this background, this article considers ways to improve the current legal framework to better protect all stakeholders while promoting public health outcomes. By addressing the complex interplay between technological innovation and state responsibility, including the roles of governmental and regulatory bodies, this piece aims to explore ways to maximize the opportunities offered by FemTech while ensuring public well-being.
Alice Margaria, The Construction of Fatherhood: The Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights (Cambridge University Press, 2019, xiii + 191 pp, £85) ISBN 978-1-108-47509-9 (hb)The question of gender equality before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR)—one of the most powerful human rights bodies in Europe and beyond—is not only underresearched but, to the extent that it has been the subject of research, such research has mostly focused on understanding the status of women and women’s rights, leaving aside questions about men and masculinities.1 Alice Margaria’s book The Construction of Fatherhood: The Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights2 is the first comprehensive study to inquire into gender equality before the ECtHR from the perspective of men, being a welcome and much needed addition to the literature on gender legal studies. The book starts from the idea that gender equality requires not only changing women’s traditional roles, but also men’s roles, in particular that of breadwinners, which oftentimes limit men’s ability to be involved in childcare and other domestic tasks. Keeping...
Care entlang eines Spektrums: Vaterschaft in der Rechtsprechung des EGMRZusammenfassung Das vorliegende Kapitel befasst sich mit dem Verhältnis zwischen rechtlicher Vaterschaft und Care in der Rechtsprechung des Europäischen Gerichtshofs für Menschenrechte (EGMR). Hiermit wird ein breites Spektrum von Interpretationen von väterlicher Care aufgezeigt. Zunächst wird der sich wandelnde Charakter der Vaterschaft sowohl im gesellschaftlichen als auch im rechtlichen Kontext vorgestellt. Anschließend wird die einschlägige Rechtsprechung des EGMR präsentiert. Konzeptualisierungen von Care, die an einem Ende des Spektrums stehen, werden untersucht: Care als relevant. Insbesondere werden die drei folgenden Arten von Care präsentiert: Care als Sorgearbeit, Care als Sorgeabsicht und Care als Sorgepotenzial. Der Schwerpunkt wird dann auf die andere Seite des Spektrums verlagert: Fälle werden vorgestellt, in denen Care in traditioneller Weise definiert wird, nämlich als weiblich, in denen väterliche Care als irrelevant angesehen wird, oder in denen väterliche Care unsichtbar gemacht wird – zum Nachteil der beschwerdeführenden Väter. Abschließend wird auf die Schwierigkeit bei der Einbeziehung von Männern, insbesondere von Vätern, in den Care-Rahmen hingewiesen.