Benjamin Capps

Related Information

• CV
   

Education

• B.Sc. (Hons) Genetics, Cardiff University, UK
• MA, School of Law, University of Sheffield, UK
• Ph.D., Faculty of Medicine, University of Bristol, UK
   

Research Interests

Ben’s work investigates issues relating to the nexus between applied ethics, normative theory, and jurisprudence. His overall aim is to impart substantive ethical grounding and critique that has professional and wider social impact.

In 2025, Ben coordinated a workshop on Re-examining the Assumptions: Population-Specific Reference Genomes, Genomic Sovereignty, and Common Human Heritage @ the HUGO Genome Meeting held in Durban, South Africa. He was awarded a grant in 2024 to lead a workshop at the Brocher Foundation in Geneva on The Ecological Genome Project and the Promises of Ecogenomics for Society. The workshop involved academics from around the world, and was supported by funding from the Johns Hopkins Medical School, Jackson Laboratory, and HUGO. He was the PI on the project ‘One Health, Zoonotic Diseases and Pandemic Planning: Creating a Bioethics Framework in Singapore’ (Ministry of Health, Singapore, 2014-16); and Workpackage Leader on ‘EPOCH: Ethics in Public Policy Making: The Case of Human Enhancement’ (European Commission, 2010-12).
 

Most recent publications

• Capps, B., Chadwick, R., Joly, Y. Lajaunie, C., Hauptmannova, I., Mackenzie, S., Mulvihill, J., Mumford, E., Rasmussen, S., Sanghavi, K., Thaldar, D., Yeates, J., Quinzin, M., and Lederman, Z. 2025. The Ecological Genome Project and the Promises of Ecogenomics for Society: Realising a Shared Vision as One Health. Bioethics https://doi.org/10.1111/bioe.70020.
• Capps, B. 2025. A One Health Economy. Global Bioethics. 36(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/11287462.2025.2511516
• Capps, B. In press, 2025. The Idea of Governance in One Health. In: Beyleveld, D., Düwell, M., and Brownsword, R. eds. Research Handbook on Law, Governance and Bioethics Research Handbooks in Legal Theory series. Edward Elgar Publishing.
• Capps, B. 2025. The Environment, Population Health Ethics, and Genomics. In Kumar, D. and Chadwick, R. eds. Genomics, Populations, and Society. A volume in Genomics and Precision Medicine in Clinical Practice; Kumar, D. series ed. London: Elsevier. pp. 253-271.
• Capps, B. 2025. New Technologies: Ethics of Genomics. In: Quah, S. Ed.-in-Chief. International Encyclopaedia of Public Health; 3rd Edition. London. Elsevier. pp. 293-303.
   

Key journal publications

• Capps, B. 2022. One Health Ethics. Bioethics* 36(4): 348-355.
  
  • *Top 10 most-cited papers published 1st January 2022-31st December 2023.
• Capps, B. 2021. Where does Open Science Lead Us During a Pandemic? A Public Good Argument to Prioritise Rights in the Open Commons. Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 30(1): 1-14
• Capps, B., Van de Eijk, Y., and Krahn, T. 2020. Conflicts of Interest in E-Cigarette Research: A Public Good and Public Interest Perspective. Bioethics 34(1): 114-122.
• Mulvihill, J. Capps, B., Joly, J. Lysaght, T., Zwart, H. and Chadwick, R. The International Human Genome Organisation (HUGO) Committee of Ethics, Law, and Society (CELS). 2017. Ethical Issues of CRISPR Technology and Gene Editing through the Lens of Solidarity. British Medical Bulletin 122(1): 109-122
• Capps, B. 2016. The Funding of Medical Research by Industry: Can a Good Tree bring Forth Evil Fruit? British Medical Bulletin 118(1):5-15
• Capps, B., Bailey, M., Bickford, D., Coker, R., Lederman, Z., Lover, A., Lysaght, T., and Tambyah, P. 2015. Introducing One Health to the Ethical Debate about Zoonotic Diseases in South East Asia. Bioethics 29(8): 588–596
   

Selected awards and honours

• Wellcome Trust Research Fellowship (Ph.D. Medicine; 2000-2003), Centre for Ethics in Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Bristol, UK.
• Wellcome Trust Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (2004-2006); Centre for Ethics in Medicine, University of Bristol, UK.
   

Service & Activity

• Chair, Human Genome Organisation (HUGO) Committee on Ethics, Law and Society. Advisory to HUGO, The Human Variome Project, and Human Genome Variation Society.
  
• Humanimal Trust. Member of Science Committee on One Medicine. Surrey, United Kingdom, Registered Charity Nos 1156927 & SC048960 www.humanimaltrust.org.uk.
• Associate Editor Human Genomics. Springer Nature.
  
• Journal Advisory Board: Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics. Cambridge University Press.
• World Federation for Animals: One Health Working Group 2019-2022.
• Belris: Bioethics and Legal Research in Singapore. Joint-Director of Singapore-based independent think-tank. 2014- 2016.
• Neuroethics Working Group, Bioethics Advisory Committee. Singapore. 2011- 2014.
• Pro-Tem National Oversight Committee for Human-Animal Combinations in Stem Cell Research. Ministry of Health, Singapore. 2011- 2012.
• Royal United Hospital Trust (City of Bath, UK) Clinical Ethics Committee. 2003-2008.

Teaching and Service

• Between 2014 and 2022, Ben was the Unit Head of Professional Competencies in Med1 – a longitudinal course on the ethical, social, and legal aspects of practicing medicine.
• Nominated Member, Leon and Rose Zitner Prize; Faculty of Health [representing Faculty of Medicine, with Faculty of Health, Faculty of Dentistry or Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences] 2001-present.