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.

摘要

本文评论了通过“地球化”地球来设计新颖的和人工的生活形式以应对人为气候变化的想法。在支持人类福祉的同时维持生物多样性的“基于自然界的解决方案”的思想将保护与气候变化联系在一起。但是，合成生物学技术，尤其是基因编辑技术，挑战了只有自然进化的生物和生态系统才能够影响气候的观念。基因工程生物的释放对生物多样性构成威胁。合成生物学对有机世界的工程愿景是大胆的。但是，用合成生物进行地形改造与环境保护主义者对生活多样性和多样生态的关注是矛盾的。