Kirk Allison, Ph.D.
Kirk Allison is Geneforum’s first “Research Fellow.” He holds a PhD degree in Germanic Studies and a Masters of Science in Health Services Research, Policy and Administration with a minor in Bioethics from the University of Minnesota. He has been the Director of Program in Human Rights and Health in the School of Public Health at the school since 2006. His research and teaching focus is at the nexus of health and human rights. His research interests range from the science and ethics of stem cell policy to transplantation policies in China and from eugenics to civic engagement and genomics. He is co-author (with G. Fowler) of “Technology and citizenry: A model of public consultation for science policy formation,” currently in press in the Journal of Evolution and Technology, and is co-authoring and presenting an invited poster session, “Public health genomics, ethics and policy: Whose voices, whose policy?” at a Gordon Research Conference, “Science and technology policy: Governing emerging technologies” August 17-22, 2008 in Big Sky Montana and at the American Public Health Association 2008 conference in San Diego, where is also chairing a session on ethics.
Marie Godfrey, Ph.D.
Marie Godfrey, PhD, was trained as a geneticist at Johns Hopkins University and worked many years as a medical writer for the pharmaceutical industry. Her primary focus is education and helping readers translate what they read in public media into meaningful information for their lives. During her five-year tenure at Geneforum as the Genetizen principal blogger, Marie’s postings have focused on a broad spectrum of genetic issues, most particularly those related to genetic testing and the science and ethics of stem cell research. Marie, along with Geneforum co-founder, Greg Fowler, has been recently invited by the Chief Medical Information Officer, Goeffrey W. Rutledge at Wellsphere to join other experts around the country in contributing to the organization’s new genetics blogging community.