Biography:

Dr Brian Johnson was until recently Senior Advisor on Biotechnology to the British Statutory Nature Conservation Agencies at English Nature, one of the UK governments advisors on nature conservation. He has been closely involved in the debate on potential effects of GMOs on biodiversity and other aspects of the environment. After pursuing academic research in population genetics and ecology, he has spent the last 20 years in nature conservation. He has written numerous articles in the scientific and popular press about biosafety, conservation and the impact of biotechnology on the environment. Dr Johnson sits on several advisory committees concerned with biological research, regulating the release of GMOs into the environment, and the development of more sustainable farming methods. In 2004 he chaired the panel reviewing biosafety within CGIAR. He is a member of the design and authorship team of the International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development, an initiative launched by the World Bank/UNEP in 2003.

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