Co-submitters are any delegates who have either participated in the construction of this resolution (e.g. merging, contributing clauses) or alternatively have signed that they would like to see this resolution debated in committee.

FORUM: SOCHUM
The questions of: The use of CRISPR technology
Main submitter: France
Co-Submitters: USA, New Zealand, UAE, Greece, Iran, Norway

Defines CRISPR as Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats,

Defines CRISPR as a genetic engineering tool that uses a CRISPR sequence of DNA and its associated protein,

Defines GMO's as Genetically Modified Organisms,

Alarmed by the statistic of 39.5% of men and women will be diagnosed with a cancer at some point during their lifetimes,

Recognises both the advantages and potential consequences of CRISPR technology,


1. Calls for the creation of a new UN sub committee, functioning under the WHO, called the UNCCT (United Nations Committee of CRISPR Technology), which is specifically concerned with CRISPR technology, which would:
             a. Act as the global authority on CRISPR advancement and research
             b. Include scientists and an ethics panel of different viewpoints from all willing member nations, nominated by the WHO
             c. Be responsible for creating and adapting international guidelines for laboratories in all member nations in order to maintain safety and order in any new work with CRISPR sequences
             d. Collect and categorize any new data - in a database to be overseen by the forementioned sub-committee - found through CRISPR research in the laboratories of willing member nations in order to               foster a better understanding of current global progress regarding this technology;

2. Urges all member nations, who have not already done so, to sign the Oviedo Convention on the prevention of CRISPR-Cas9 technology experimentation on the human germline which explicitly bans all modification on human embryos and to genes that could be passed onto any offspring;

3. Requests that all member nations begin to draft national regulations and guidelines for this nature of research in private company laboratories within their jurisdictions, examples of these regulations may include:
            a. Voluntary inspections to be carried out by government appointed inspectors biannually of company laboratories working with CRISPR technology to ensure good practice
            b. Introduce a system of registration for companies wishing to employ CRISPR gene editing in the mass corporate production of goods
            c. Penalties to be put in place for anybody who releases genetically modified organisms into the nations ecosystem without the approval of that nation's proper authorities on the matter;

4. Urges member nations to take a view on the regulation of CRISPR technology that would govern the use of CRISPR modified crops in a manner that is separate and distinct from the regulation of GMO crops, such as but not limited to:
            a. Unique grants and forms of financial aid to the agricultural sector to encourage the use of beneficial CRISPR modifications in the sector
            b. A separate review, assessment and authorization process of new modified crops before the relevant national/international regulatory bodies
            c. A distinct identification and categorization of CRISPR food items to be displayed on any such packaging that would clearly identify the distinction between CRISPR modified crops, GMO crops and                organic crops in a manner that would be clear to a consumer;

5. Recommends the creation of a conference to be held in by the UNCCT, to emphasize the importance of global cooperation and communication regarding further genealogical research or subsequent experimentation using CRISPR technology to avoid any permanent detrimental effects to the human genome or global ecosystems;

6. Encourages national legislators to consider the scientific and biological realities of the use CRISPR-Cas9 technology and specifically:
           a. The distinction between CRISPR-Cas9 and other forms of genome editing technology such as transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs) and zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs)
           b. Regarding the ability of officials and scientists to detect minute changes in the genome of an organism that otherwise could have occurred by natural mutation;

7. Further calls for the establishment of a collaborative network for the furtherment of better global registry and surveillance of human genome-editing technologies, research and trade of CRISPR technology, led by the World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Advisory Committee on Developing Global Standards for Governance and Oversight of Human Genome Editing;

8. Proposes the assessment of the freedom of research and medical ethics at worldwide institutions - by the aforementioned WHO committee - in the context of national and international initiatives, and       launching a monitoring group of relevant stakeholders to promote open debate on the societal aspects of these technologies such as:
           a. research related to cancer, virus infections, genetic diseases and detection of pathogens in humans
           b. targeting various genes of interest in agriculture, for improved nutrition, enhanced disease resistance and improved tolerance against drought
           c. The permanent damage to chromosomes and other parts of the body due to the unintended consequences of editing such genes;

9.Further Requests that all nations through research on CRISPR technology, and its many benefits and potential hazards, before taking a decisive stance on its integration.