Island Conservation

runs the GBIRd (Genetic Biocontrol of Invasive Rodents) program, using geographically isolated island sites to conduct confined gene-drive field trials for invasive-rodent control, generating the ecological containment and persistence data regulators require.

Country: United States

Research institute

Coverage

	CN	EU	US
regulatory-legal	✓	✓	✓

Regulatorsefsausda-aphis

Verifiable facts

Fact	Value	Source
Affiliation	Island Conservation is a founding partner of the Genetic Biocontrol of Invasive Rodents (GBIRd) partnership, which also includes CSIRO, North Carolina State University, Texas A&M University, University of Adelaide, and USDA’s APHIS.	geneticbiocontrol.org
Research focus	Developing gene drive technology (e.g., t-CRISPR) to eradicate invasive rodents on islands by biasing offspring sex ratios.	geneticbiocontrol.org · islandconservation.org
Facility	CSIRO’s biosecure mouse facilities in Geelong, Australia.	smh.com.au
Grant	Approximately $6.5 million in DARPA (Safe Genes program) funding.	nzherald.co.nz · smh.com.au
Publications	The partnership publishes research on rodent population genomics, gene drive feasibility, and ethics, including studies in journals like PNAS and Evolution Applications. medium confidence	conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Principal staff	Penny Becker (CEO, Island Conservation), J. Royden Saah (GBIRd Program Coordinator), David Will (Head of Innovation, Island Conservation), Paul Thomas (Professor, University of Adelaide).	genedrivenetwork.org · islandconservation.org
Headcount	Island Conservation reports having a team of staff, Board of Directors, and an Advisory Council, but does not specify a total employee headcount. medium confidence	islandconservation.org

Independent sources: conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com · genedrivenetwork.org · geneticbiocontrol.org · nzherald.co.nz · smh.com.au

Technologies

Name	Cluster	Risk
Ecological risks of synthetic biology	regulatory-legal	Medium	→

Compiled by BIOECON from primary sources.

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