Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Correspondence
  • Published:

Reply to ‘Genome engineering for conservation might be a game changer but only with the incorporation of Indigenous voices’

Nature Reviews Biodiversity volume 2, pages 139–140 (2026)Cite this article

Subjects

We welcome the Correspondence by Wilcox et al. to our Perspective1 (van Oosterhout, C. et al. Genome engineering in biodiversity conservation and restoration. Nat. Rev. Biodivers. 1, 543–555 (2025)), which highlights the importance of incorporating Indigenous voices in the genome engineering of threatened species (Wilcox, P. et al. Genome engineering for conservation might be a game changer but only with the incorporation of Indigenous voices. Nat. Rev. Biodivers. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-025-00118-w (2026))2. They further suggest that our Perspective1 did not sufficiently engage with Indigenous frameworks. We appreciate the opportunity to clarify our position and expand on how ethical and governance considerations were intended in our discussion. In our Perspective, we made substantial efforts to cite relevant literature to this effect. We acknowledged that Indigenous peoples must be key partners in decisions about genetic interventions in their territories. We cited principles of inclusive engagement, equitable benefit sharing and respect for sovereign rights, such as the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Nagoya Protocol.

Initiatives in conservation genomics must be co-designed by Indigenous peoples and local communities to honour cultural values and legal rights. Indigenous guardianship of biodiversity is well established as improving conservation outcomes3, and their worldviews, including spiritual relationships with other species, enrich the ethical framework for intervention. We agree that without Indigenous leadership and buy-in, gene-editing initiatives risk repeating past injustices of exclusion. Our Perspective’s call for inclusive governance was meant to echo this point, although Wilcox et al. have rightly pushed for it to be made even more explicit. We therefore propose the following amendments in three of the six principles we suggested for the responsible governance of gene editing in species conservation initiatives.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on SpringerLink
  • Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. van Oosterhout, C. et al. Genome engineering in biodiversity conservation and restoration. Nat. Rev. Biodivers. 1, 543–555 (2025).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Wilcox, P. et al. Genome engineering for conservation might be a game changer but only with the incorporation of Indigenous voices. Nat. Rev. Biodivers. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-025-00118-w (2026).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES secretariat, 2019).

  4. Barnhill-Dilling, S. K. & Delborne, J. A. The genetically engineered American chestnut tree as opportunity for reciprocal restoration in Haudenosaunee communities. Biol. Conserv. 232, 1–7 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Sandler, R. L., Moses, L. & Wisely, S. M. An ethical analysis of cloning for genetic rescue: case study of the black-footed ferret. Biol. Conserv. 257, 109118 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Gordon, D. R. et al. Responsible governance of gene editing in agriculture and the environment. Nat. Biotechnol. 39, 1055–1057 (2021).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK

    Cock van Oosterhout & Thomas Birley

  2. Colossal Foundation, Dallas, TX, USA

    Megan A. Supple, Leandra Brickson, Matt James & Stephen D. Turner

  3. Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Hernán E. Morales

  4. Mauritian Wildlife Foundation, Vacoas, Mauritius

    Vikash Tatayah & Carl G. Jones

  5. Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Jersey, Jersey

    Carl G. Jones, Harriet L. Whitford & Simon Tollington

  6. National Parks and Conservation Service, Ministry of Agro-Industry, Food Security, Blue Economy and Fisheries, Government of Mauritius, Reduit, Mauritius

    Kevin Ruhomaun

  7. Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, School of Natural Sciences, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK

    Jim Groombridge

  8. Colossal Biosciences, Dallas, TX, USA

    Anna L. Keyte, Beth Shapiro, Matt James & Stephen D. Turner

  9. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA

    Beth Shapiro

  10. School of Data Science, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Stephen D. Turner

Authors
  1. Cock van Oosterhout
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Megan A. Supple
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Hernán E. Morales
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Thomas Birley
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Vikash Tatayah
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Carl G. Jones
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Harriet L. Whitford
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Simon Tollington
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Kevin Ruhomaun
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Jim Groombridge
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Leandra Brickson
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Anna L. Keyte
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  13. Beth Shapiro
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  14. Matt James
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  15. Stephen D. Turner
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Cock van Oosterhout or Stephen D. Turner.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

M.A.S., L.B., A.L.K., B.S., M.J. and S.D.T. hold stock options in Colossal Biosciences. M.A.S. and L.B. are employed by Colossal Foundation. A.L.K., B.S. and M.J. are employed by Colossal Biosciences; B.S. is the chief science officer and M.J. is the chief animal officer. S.D.T. was previously employed by and owns stock in Colossal Biosciences. C.v.O. and J.G. received a donation from the Colossal Foundation for conservation genomics research on the pink pigeon. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

van Oosterhout, C., Supple, M.A., Morales, H.E. et al. Reply to ‘Genome engineering for conservation might be a game changer but only with the incorporation of Indigenous voices’. Nat. Rev. Biodivers. 2, 139–140 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-025-00119-9

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Version of record:

  • Issue date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-025-00119-9

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing: Translational Research

Sign up for the Nature Briefing: Translational Research newsletter — top stories in biotechnology, drug discovery and pharma.

Get what matters in translational research, free to your inbox weekly. Sign up for Nature Briefing: Translational Research