Introduction

Embryo donation (ED) is the donation of surplus embryos to another
infertile couple or persons following in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treat-
ment. ED for reproductive purposes has been available in New
Zealand since 2005, while ED for research purposes remains prohib-
ited (Advisory Committee on Assisted Reproductive Technology 2008).
ED for reproductive purposes differs from the donation of organs dis-
cussed in other chapters in this collection for a number of reasons. First,
the embryo cannot be said to be a human bodily part. Rather, it is an
entity in its own right with the potential to become a child. Second,
the embryo has been created by two people contributing their respec-
tive gametes, and therefore the decision-making concerning donation

5

Towards an Understanding of Embryo

Donation in New Zealand: The Views

of Donors and Recipients

Sonja Goedeke and Ken Daniels

© The Author(s) 2017
R.M. Shaw (ed.), Bioethics Beyond Altruism,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-55532-4_5

115

S. Goedeke (*)
Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand
e-mail: [email protected]

K. Daniels
University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand

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