Bioethics: Everything You Wanted to Know about Life and Death, but Were Afraid to Ask

Location: St. Mary's University, University Center, Conference Room A
All events are free and open to the public

Tuesday, October 21, 2003

9:45 AM - 11:00 AM: Race, Class, and Gender: Who Gets Health Care?

1. What system of allocating health care resources do we have in the US?
2. What other systems are there?
3. How fair is our system?
4. How do issues of race, class, and gender play a role in who gets health care?

11:10 AM - 12:25 PM:New Ways of Making Babies

1. What are the different types of reproductive technologies?
2. How do these technologies affect women?
3. What are the effects of these technologies in society?

12:35 PM - 1:50 PM: From Dolly to The Boys from Brazil: Cloning Human Beings

1. What does the technology of cloning involve?
2. What are some of the facts and myths of human cloning?
3. What reasons are there to reject the cloning of human beings?
4. What reasons are there to accept the cloning of human beings?

Wednesday. October 22, 2003

9:20 AM - 10:10 AM: A Blueprint for Life: The Human Genome Project

1. What is the Human Genome Project?
2. What can we learn about human beings from this project?
3. What can we not learn about human beings from this project?
4. What are some of the ethical, legal, and social implications resulting from this project?

10:20 AM - 11:10 AM: A Brave New World: Genetic Technologies

1. What are the different types of genetic technologies?
2. What reasons are there to use these technologies?
3. What effects can these technologies have in our society?
4. How are race and gender issues involved in the use of these technologies?

11:20 AM - 12:10 PM: HIV and AIDS: Prejudice and Policies

1. What are HIV and AIDS? What are the demographics of HIV and AIDS?
2. Under what circumstances should individuals be tested for HIV?
3. What moral obligations arise in relation to HIV and AIDS?
4. What are the economic and political issues in the spread and treatment of AIDS?
5. How does discrimination against women play a role in AIDS prevention campaigns?

12:20 PM -1:10 PM: Powerful Cells: Embryonic Stem Cell Research

1. What are Embryonic Stem Cells?
2. Are there other types of stem cells?
3. What benefits might there be from embryonic stem cell research?
4. What ethical concerns are raised by embryonic stem cell research?

Thursday, October 23, 2003

9:45 AM - 11:00 AM: Human Guinea Pigs? Ethical Issues in Human and Animal Experimentation

1. How have race and gender play a role in the abuse of human experimentation?
2. What conditions need to be met to assure that humans� consent to participate in an experiment is a voluntary informed consent?
3. What are the requirements for the selection of human research participants?
4. What is the legal and moral status of non-human animals?
5. What do we learn from research on non-human animals?
6. When, if ever, it is justified to use non-human animals for research purposes?

11:10 AM - 12:25 PM: Your Organ, My Life: Organ Transplantation

1. What kinds of organ transplants are possible?
2. Where do these organs come from?
3. What criteria do we use to decide when someone is dead and his/her organs harvested?
4. Who gets an organ?

12:35 PM - 1:50 PM: When Doctor Death Pulls the Plug: Euthanasia and Physician Assisted Suicide

1. What are the differences between Euthanasia and Physician Assisted Suicide?
2. What is the legal status of these activities in USA and abroad?
3. What are the ethical reasons for and against these activities?

The President's Peace Commission fosters an ethical commitment to participate in the establishment of world peace and social justice. The Commission encourages respect for human rights and dignity of all people. The Commission annually hosts symposia that offer opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to grow in their active pursuit of peace and justice. Through the symposia and other activities, the Commission seeks to build within the St. Mary's community a greater awareness of the Roman Catholic and Marianist perspectives on peace and justice. The President's Peace Commission reflects the University community through student, staff, and faculty representatives appointed by the University President.

Students: Jeremiah Ellis, Bernadette Estrada, Christina Garc�a, Dottie Laster, Ymelda Rivera, Patrick Simeroth, Shivani Singh

Staff: Carrie Gaines, Rey Gustamente, Lucy Poludniak, Minita Santizo

Faculty: Elijah Akhahenda, PhD; Inmaculada de Melo-Mart�n, PhD; Diane M. Duesterhoeft; Leona Pallansch, PhD; Richard S. Pressman, PhD

President's Peace Commission at St. Mary's University One Camino Santa Maria | San Antonio, Texas 78228 phone: (210) 436-3346 | fax: (210) 436-3782 | diane@stmarytx.edu