On January 3, British activist Mark Lynas apologized to a gathering of academics at Oxford for his staunch opposition to the production and distribution of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The challenge now posed to the environmentalists is to rely on science everywhere or rely on it nowhere. If they opt for science, they may discover, or at least need to consider, what Lynas came to believe: that, for example, GM does not increase the use of chemicals as pest-resistant cotton and maize require less insecticide. Or that the mixing of genes between unrelated species is no more unnatural than the gene flows that have driven evolution since life began.
View the full article here: ‘I was wrong:’ How one activist’s apology changes the GMO debate