Gene editing for climate: terraforming and biodiversity

ABSTRACT This paper comments on the idea of engineering novel and artificial forms of life to combat anthropogenic climate change by ‘terraforming' the Earth. The idea of ‘Nature-based Solutions' that sustain biodiversity while supporting human well-being connects conservation and climate change. However, the technologies of synthetic biology, particularly gene-editing, challenge the notion that only naturally-evolved organisms and ecosystems are capable of influencing in climate. The release of genetically-engineered organisms poses risks to biodiversity. Synthetic biology's engineering vision for the organic world is bold. But , terraforming with synthetic organisms is at odds with the conservationist’s concern for living diversity and diverse ecologies.