Research Training Group Bioethics
The German Research Foundation (DFG) has financed the Research Training Group "Bioethics" at the International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities at the University of Tübingen (IZEW) since 2004. The Research Training Group “Bioethics” involves 15 doctoral and 2 postdoctoral fellows as well as other associated doctoral projects.
The Research Training Group "Bioethics" is based on the successful work of the previous Research Training Group "Ethics in the Sciences" which was carried out at the IZEW from October 1991 to September 2000, the maximum possible funding duration by the DFG.
Summary of the Research Training Group Bioethics
The demand for bioethical competence is increasing. The rapid developments in biological and medical research and in its applications, both now and in the future, constantly confront us with new ethical and legal challenges. Bioethics, whether in its function as ethical reflection on current research and technology or in its anticipatory role as a sensor for possible future potentials and risks of the life sciences, is expressed in expert reports, position papers, recommendations and drafts of legislation at both national and international levels. In this sense, bioethics is becoming increasingly institutional, in both the academic and political context. There is nevertheless a considerable gap between the growing demand for bioethical competence and available educational resources. The main reason for this is to be found in the structure of our educational system. Interdisciplinary competence, such as it is required for well-founded judgements in the field of bioethics, is difficult to acquire by way of the established course of studies. It rather requires interdepartmental cooperation in which representatives of different disciplines in the natural sciences and humanities and from the medical field work together on common issues. For this reason, the post-graduate programme "Bioethics", with its research and study programmes, ought to contribute substantially to the professionalisation of interdisciplinary applied bioethics. It aims to address new issues which, despite an urgent need for clarification, have attracted little attention until now. At the same time, the programme is concerned to establish bioethics as an independent, long-term field of research alongside its relevance to questions of application of specific techniques and technologies. This requires increased reflection on the theoretical foundations of bioethics itself. In regard to the expanding field of bioethics, the members of the first phase (2004 - 2006) worked on the following main research areas: 1. theoretical foundations of bioethics; 2. ethical and philosophical aspects of the neurosciences; 3. ethical and philosophical aspects dealing with genetic information. With the beginning of the second phase in 2007 the Research Training Group is dedicated to the comprehensive research question on the "self-design of human beings by the use of biotechniques". A particular feature of the Research Training Group consists of the processing of new kinds of issues arising from the linking of particular areas of the life sciences and their technologies.
The research training group bioethics is currently in the third and last phase of his running period. Therefore all research positions are awarded and no more scholarships will be announced.
Contact:
Spokeswoman of the Research Training Group Bioethics
Prof. Dr. Eve-Marie Engels
International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW)
University of Tübingen
Wilhelmstraße 19
72074 Tübingen
phone: ++49 / 7071 / 29-77195
e-Mail: eve-marie.engels[at]uni-tuebingen.de
Deputy spokesperson of the Research Training Group Bioethics
PD Dr. Thomas Potthast
International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW)
University of Tübingen
Wilhelmstraße 19
72074 Tübingen
phone: ++49 / 7071 / 29-75251
fax:++49 / 7071 / 29-5255
e-Mail: potthast[at]uni-tuebingen.de
Coordinator of the Research Training Group Bioethics
Dr. Ralf Lutz
International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW)
University of Tübingen
Wilhelmstraße 19
72074 Tübingen
phone: ++49 / 7071 / 29-77510
fax:++49 / 7071 / 29-5255
e-Mail: gk-bioethik[at]uni-tuebingen.de
If you have questions about the Research Training Group Bioethics or need further informations, please address the academic coordinator Mr. Ralf Lutz.
