Petition and comments

6060 people have signed the petition

The Don't Destroy Research petition is now closed, many thanks to everyone who signed it. Below is the list of signatories and their comments. You can also see a collection of public support for the Rothamsted researchers' appeal here.

The planned direct action against the GM wheat experiment at Rothamsted did not happen on Sunday 27th May. The GM wheat trial is ongoing.



Signatures

Joseph Boots-Ebenfield, Student
The destruction of knowledge should never be permitted.

Hans De Steur, agricultural economist
Scientific research is the will to seek for answers. Give us the opportunity to do so and let us provide a platform to discuss them.

Lucy Fray, PhD Student
Destroying research is a backwards step. You have to understand a problem before you can fix it, whatever your views.

Drew Stitt, Civil Servant
More scientific research , less reactionary bullying.

Alan Smith, IT Product Consultant
Destroying scientific research is despicable. Luddites!

Nuno Martins, PhD student
What you have today has been brought to you by the benefits of science. Science can be done irresponsibly too, and you guys keep everyone on our toes. But please take some time to understand the implications of what you are doing. Like science, social change also has to be done responsibly. Your actions could mean that hundreds or thousands of lives might not be saved in some near future.

Dr Kathy Lewis, Agricultural researcher
Let science do its job.

N Salama, Ecological Researcher
Please let reasonable well meaning scientific investigation prevail and not take uninformed gut reaction.

Alison Smith, University Professor
The potential benefits of GM technology are considerable, and to date there is no evidence of serious harm or risk posed by GM crops. But for anyone concerned about environmental risks, then the most logical thing would be to allow the trials to go ahead, to collect the data to enable the risks to be assessed.

Kidist Kibret, Student
IS the harm from using chemicals better than growing GM? I know the extent of aphid problem from damages to my experimental plants. I can imagine what it can do to crop production. An open mind about GM crops, they might not be always harmful. Nature produces its own GM.

Hedwig, Student
No need to say anything more.

Sean Tuck, Student
This is the sort of response from a scientific field that has spent a great deal of time recovering from poor media coverage, so that it may finally get presented in the public eye in a more rational light. Here's to open debate with public involvement so that years of research, such as GM, are not hindered in the future.

Jennifer Huffman, PhD Student

Maartje Klapwijk, researcher
Just to make sure GM crops are safe we need the research!

Dr. Andy Green, Senior Researcher in Agri-Environmental Science
Research of this sort is vital if we are to feed a growing world population whilst reducing our reliance on expensive pesticide use, with the environmental risks that go along with it. This is no time for an ill informed blinkered outlook to reduce our options for dealing with the serious issues that threaten us all.

Pearse Walker, Librarian
Sounds like pretty worthwhile research to me. Don't let what happened in the Dark Ages - scientific progress suppressed by ignorance - to happen again.

Hayley, MSc Student
Destroying this important research will be a huge waste of time and public money as well as taking a step backwards in a field where progress is essential.

Eleanor, other
Those who are scared of GM should note that this new crop may be a way to wean farmers off dangerous, expensive pesticides, leading to a healthier and happier ecosystem - minor GM changes could prove far better for everyone and everything involved than gallons of pesticides. But we won't know if this is the case until it's been harvested and tested, so I can only hope that the vandals will accept reason and wait the bare few months till the crop is harvested.

Penny Maplestone, CEO
Increasing food production 40-50% by 2030 is going to require all possible useful and appropriate technologies to be available in the plant breeders' toolbox; preventing relevant research is morally unacceptable.

Kristin Carlsson, Science communication
I hope that come the 27th, the protesters will meet the scientists and engage in fruitful conversation so that both parties can learn from each other. Don't do knee-jerk activism and ruin years of research!

« previous   1   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   100   110   120   130   140   150   160   170   180   190   200   210   220   230   240   250   251   252   253   254   255   256   257   258   259   260   270   280   290   300   next »


Latest tweets from: @senseaboutsci