Research

The content, context and approaches of biological research raise fascinating social, ethical and –more broadly– philosophical questions.
We develop philosophical analyses of various concepts in, and related to biological research. Moreover, we identify and discuss various ethical issues that this research raises in the interaction between people and in interactions of humans with nature.
To develop practical and real-world arguments we explore these issues in regular exchanges with natural scientists and we complement our philosophical analysis with empirical social science methods such as interview studies or surveys.

Not only the communication of scientific work but also the development of research questions and the interpretation of results is done through language. In this process scientific terms such as ‘ecology’ or ‘genome’ are used alongside everyday words such as ‘nature’ or ‘disease’. Even though we are often unaware of it, different people use these terms with different interpretations and associations. This can create ambiguity and misunderstandings in discourses about biological research and its implications. 
In our conceptual analyses we have focused on everyday terms such as ‘life’ or ‘nature’ as well as newer technical terms such as ‘synthetic biology’ or ‘genetic resources’. We have identified and compared different interpretations of these terms and analysed the worldviews and normative implications associated with them. 

Key publications
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2022. “Are People Part of Nature? Yes and No: A Perspectival Account of the Concept of ‘Nature’.” Environmental Ethics 44(2): 99-119. doi:10.5840/enviroethics202242736 
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2018. "‘Genetic resources’, an analysis of a multifaceted concept."  Biological Conservation 222:86-94. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2018.03.031.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna, Daniel Gregorowius, and Nikola Biller-Andorno. 2015. "Different Understandings of Life as an Opportunity to Enrich the Debate About Synthetic Biology."  Nanoethics 9 (2):179-188. doi: 10.1007/s11569-015-0226-1.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2012. "The conception of life in synthetic biology."  Science and engineering ethics 18 (4):757-74. doi: 10.1007/s11948-011-9269-z.

Environmental ethics deals with the normative questions of how we (as human moral agents) should act in and interact with the natural environment. In our research we are interested in both aspects of environmental ethics, in social as well as non-anthropocentric ethical questions. 
In social environmental ethics we have addressed questions such as, how natural resources  (e.g. genetic resources) can be distributed fairly and what it means to respect different views on nature or life.
As issues of non-anthropocentric ethics, we have discussed, for instance, the moral standing of living organisms in synthetic biology or argued for an understanding of ‘relational environmental values’ as non-anthropocentric values.
In the current research project “People’s Place in Nature” (supported by the NOMIS foundation https://nomisfoundation.ch/people/anna-deplazes-zemp/ ) we combine these perspectives. We investigate human-nature relations by studying the environmental values of different stakeholders and by analysing the normative meaning of human-nature relations.
In our interdisciplinary approach, we address these questions by combining philosophical analysis  with empirical methods (interview studies, surveys). The philosophical analysis is used to shape and sharpen the interview and survey questions. Conversely the empirical data feed directly into the development of ethical arguments that are close to life and practice.

Key publications
Anna Wienhues, Linnea Luuppala, Anna Deplazes-Zemp. 2023. “The moral landscape of biological conservation: Understanding conceptual and normative foundations.” Biological Conservation, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2023.110350
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2023. Beyond Intrinsic and Instrumental: Third-Category Value in Environmental Ethics and Environmental Policy.” Ethics, Policy & Environment, published online: 24 Jan 2023, doi.org/10.1080/21550085.2023.2166341
Chapman Mollie, Anna Deplazes-Zemp. 2022. “’I owe it to the animals’: The bidirectionality of Swiss alpine farmers’ relational values.” People and Nature, doi.org/ 10.1002/pan3.10415
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna, and Mollie Chapman. 2021. "The ABCs of Relational Values: Environmental Values That Include Aspects of Both Intrinsic and Instrumental Valuing."  Environmental Values 30(6): 669-693. doi:10.3197/096327120X15973379803726.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2019. "A global biodiversity fund to implement distributive justice for genetic resources."  Dev World Bioeth. doi: 10.1111/dewb.12230.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2018. "Commutative Justice and Access and Benefit Sharing for Genetic Resources "  Ethics, Policy & Environment 21 (1):110-126. doi: 10.1080/21550085.2018.1448042.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna, Samuel Abiven, Peter Schaber, Michael Schaepman, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub, Bernhard Schmid, K. Kentaro Shimizu, and Florian Altermatt. 2018. "The Nagoya Protocol could backfire on the Global South."  Nat Ecol Evol 2 (6):917-919. doi: 10.1038/s41559-018-0561-z.

Our research on the ethics of biotechnology, has similar aims and approaches to our studies in environmental ethics. We have also combined philosophical analysis and argumentation with interviews and surveys. In combination with our conceptual and environmental ethics analyses, we have explored the concept of ‘life’ in synthetic biology and discussed various potential societal ethical issues (positive potential as well as risks) associated with this form of biotechnology. We have also explored the social perceptions of synthetic biology compared to other technologies, and we are interested in the role and responsibility of researchers in society.

Key publications
Wäscher, Sebastian, Nikola Biller-Andorno, and Anna Deplazes-Zemp. 2020. "I Don't Want to Do Anything Bad." Perspectives on Scientific Responsibility: Results from a Qualitative Interview Study with Senior Scientists."  Nanoethics 14 (2):135-153. doi: 10.1007/s11569-020-00365-5.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna, Martin Fussenegger, and Nikola Biller-Andorno. 2020. "Ethical and societal implications of cellular health-monitoring devices."  Science Translational Medicine 12 (545). doi: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aax6924.
Ineichen, Christian, Nikola Biller-Andorno, and Anna Deplazes-Zemp. 2017. "Image of Synthetic Biology and Nanotechnology: A Survey among University Students."  Frontiers in Genetics 8 (122). doi: 10.3389/fgene.2017.00122.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2016. "Artificial Cell Research as a Field that Connects Chemical, Biological and Philosophical Questions." Chimia (Aarau) 70 (6):443-8. doi: 10.2533/chimia.2016.443.
Deplazes-Zemp, Anna. 2012. "The Moral Impact of Synthesising Living Organisms: Biocentric Views on Synthetic Biology."  Environmental Values 21:63-82. doi: 10.3197/096327112X13225063228023.
Deplazes, Anna, and Markus Huppenbauer. 2009. "Synthetic organisms and living machines : Positioning the products of synthetic biology at the borderline between living and non-living matter."  Syst Synth Biol 3 (1-4):55-63. doi: 10.1007/s11693-009-9029-4.