The topic of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is emotional.  The debate pits a skeptical public against industry (that develops technologies and crops) and governments (that approve their use). And while this tension is broadly recognized, the relationship between industry and the governments that regulate agricultural products, like GM seeds, is less understood. With the advent of new technologies applied to agriculture, points of contention will continue to create challenges for regulatory systems. This will have broader socioeconomic impacts that will vary by region, including stalled innovation, increased transaction costs, restricted access to useful technologies, and uneven levels of transparency.

The Enduring Conflict Framework (ECF), developed by legal scholar Bernie Mayer, was designed to deal with situations of conflict. It shifts attention away from a promise of resolution, and focuses – instead – on a structure for sustainable dialogue and mutual understanding. The intention is to generate progress in the absence of total agreement. In this paper, the ECF is used to explore the organizational relationships around GMOs and focus on the less-understood relationship between government and industry.  The full journal article can be accessed at https://bit.ly/2RvSrRi