Jensen on CIRM; Klein on Clinical Trials
But by other standards, including its own strategic plan, the institute doesn't measure up. The money is not flowing as fast as called for. Rosy campaign promises of cures and an economic boom still await fulfillment. Built-in conflicts of interests pervade the institute's activities. A penchant for closed-door grant reviews and secrecy screens much of the institute's most important decisions from public view. And, more than once, calls have arisen for the resignation of its chairman, Robert Klein, a man who triggers both admiration and animosity....
The institute, however, is controlled by men and women accustomed to operating outside of the public eye with few of the restraints that even local school board members face. Many come from the culture of science, where the motto sometimes seems to be: "Trust us. We are the experts."
But given the built-in conflicts at the agency, more sunshine is needed - if only to help avoid a scandal that could set back stem cell research efforts nationally and cast a pall over this creative governmental experiment.
As part of his research for the retrospective, Jensen posted in his blog a statement from Robert Klein, California's "stem cell czar." In it, Klein argues that "the board and the agency need to launch a major public information program, including a specific focus on the upcoming human embryonic stem cell clinical trials."
He's probably referring to the announcements by the two leading private embryonic stem cell research firms, Geron and Advanced Cell Technology, which recently touted their plans to move forward with trials next year.