The Politics of Biotechnology in North America and Europe

Two of the most prominent applications of biotechnology assisted reproductive technology and genetic modification of plants have stirred strong feelings and led to widely varying approaches among North American and European countries. Nor are states always consistent, they might be restrictive on GMOs but permissive of ARTs. In a systematic comparison of these two policy areas, this book adds greatly to our understanding. Theoretically well-informed and methodologically sophisticated, the authors show how different patterns of networks, national institutions, and international regimes explain policy outcomes. In providing this analysis, they challenge common assumptions about an "Atlantic divide" and the importance of EU institutions over nation-state ones. Policy scholars working in all policy areas will find much to learn from this book. -- William D. Coleman, Director of the Institute on Globalization and the Human Condition, McMaster University