Background

The participants behind Check on Biotech are: Associate professor Anna Haldrup, Msc Lone Bruun (LB formidling/LB information), Associate professor Søren Bak, Associate professor Jens Kvist Nielsen, Professor Henrik Vibe Scheller and Professor Birger Lindberg Møller. Moreover, Claudia Girnth-Diamba, Associate professor at Solrød Gymnasium and Biotech consultant for Foreningen af Danske Biologer/ the Association of Danish Biologists has participated in the project from the start.

 

The initiative originally came from Anna Haldrup after she had taught gene technology at an upper secondary school teacher supplementary training course. She suggested the teachers that KU-LIFE should produce a kit for the upper secondary schools in order for the student to engineer plants genetically themselves. Supported by Professor Birger Lindberg Møller and Professor Henrik Vibe Scheller, Anna Haldrup embarked on the project. To provide assistance, Lone Bruun was engaged in the project. We did, however, have a long distance to go.

 

2001: Idea from upper secondary school teachers
2002: Development of the concept
2002: Risk assessment from the Danish Forest and Nature Agency
2002: Budget
2003: Grant applications and issuing of written material by invited authors
2003: Course at KU-LIFE for upper secondary school teachers in instrumenting the Check on Biotech kits
2003: Authorization for the gene experiments at five selected upper secondary schools from the Danish Working Environment Authority
2003: Five test upper secondary schools try out the kits
2004: Evaluation of the test results
2004: Rewriting and publishing of the written material
2004: We apply for general authorization from the Danish Working Environment Authority and the Danish Ministry of Education
2004: New agreement between the Danish Working Environment Authority and the Danish Ministry of Education on the authorization to use transgenic plants in upper secondary schools and higher preparatory courses

 

For start-up, authorization procedure etc. we have been fortunate to receive funding from:

 

• The Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University (From 2007: Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen) 
• Center for Molecular Plant Physiology (PlaCe)  
• The Danish Agricultural and Veterinary Research Council

Bikuben Foundation has provided funding for the book "Tjek på Biotek", which serve as text book and manual for pupils and teachers: