Symposium Reproductive Futures – Law, Kinship, and Identity in Assisted Reproductive Technologies
📆 May 19, 2026, 9:00–16:00
📍Meridian Hall, Collegium Helveticum
A transdisciplinary symposium exploring the socio-legal dimensions of assisted reproductive technologies (ART), with a focus on reproductive markets, biopolitics, reproductive justice, and governance.
Biological and social reproduction are inextricably intertwined. Legislative, economic, ethical, and symbolic frameworks regulate reproductive practices while simultaneously shaping behaviours, expectations, and representations of family, kinship, and identity.
This symposium examines the intersection of law, social sciences, and bioethics, focusing on how legal frameworks both reflect and produce social imaginaries of reproduction. Drawing on comparative legal analysis, sociology of law, anthropology, and critical bioethics, it addresses the evolving landscape of ART across Europe and beyond.
Key topics include the lifting of donor anonymity (as in the UK and, more recently, France), the role of genetic discourse in reconfiguring kinship, and the complex negotiations between industry interests and the rights of donor-conceived individuals. Particular attention is given to the emerging voices of individuals born through ART involving third-party gamete donation, who are increasingly demanding legal and political recognition.
Participants include a variety of scholars and experts—legal researchers, sociologists, anthropologists, bioethicists, and activists—from projects in Spain and Switzerland, as well as specialists from the UK and US in donor conception and reproductive law.