Building the Future with Biotech: Biotech for the Environment

Emerging biotechnology enables many opportunities for a more vibrant environment, such as modifying microbes, like yeast, to upcycle waste for new materials or breeding crops that require fewer resources to grow. But what if we were also able to harness the power of living organisms to help clean up the environment? What if organisms could also absorb, store, and break down contaminants in our soil and water? In fact, using plants and microbes, bolstered by biotechnology, we already can through a process called bioremediation. This paper offers three examples of how bioremediation plays a critical role in renewing our environment and how advancements in biotechnology are opening the door to even more effective solutions.