The Zvi Meitar Institute for Legal Implications of Emerging Technologies (מכון צבי מיתר לחדשנות טכנולוגית, משפט ואתיקה) is situated at the Radzyner Law School at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya (המרכז הבינתחומי הרצליה). The institute is currently fully funded by a generous donation from Zvi Meitar, and is broadly interested in looking at ethical, economic, social and legal implications of new and emerging technologies both in hitech and in biotech. Within this broad range of technologies, the institute will have a particular focus on disruptive technologies, including, for example: nanotechnology, 3D printing, autonomous robotics, next generation energy sources, telemedicine, synthetic biology, genetically modified organisms, personalized medicine and next generation genomic sequencing. The institute is intended to have multiple faces, in which we can see the potential for substantive and lucrative collaborations.
1) The policy face intends to provide deliverables to government, NGOs, and corporate offices, providing, for example, short comprehensive summaries on issues associated with particular technologies. The policy face will also be involved in drafting amicus briefs and draft statutes.
2) A public face will look toward educating and informing the public on issues relating to new and innovative technologies both through publishing in the lay literature, newspaper opinion pages, and via various forms of social media. Here too we are keen on submitting OpEds in areas of joint interest. Regular events, designed to engage broad audiences of the public at large will also be held.
3) The pedagogical face of the institute will endeavor to engage students through individual and large-scale projects for student researchers who join the center, as well as regular events featuring local and international experts on areas of interest to the institute.
4) The Institute will also include a vibrant academic face wherein we intend to publish and present scholarly papers, books and textbooks. The institute will also collaborate with other similar-minded institutions locally and globally on varied issues within its mandate. And, it will strive to obtain additional outside funding in the form of grants and awards to expand its operations and hire additional postdoctoral fellows.
