For scientists thinking about leaving the states to pursue work elsewhere, the opportunities are expanding every day. Efforts in the United Kingdom are widely covered and noted with interest by US scientists and investors. Careful readers of international financial and research news can find almost daily notices of other biotech expansions in fields that are currently controversial in the United States:

Germany: In January 2002, the German parliament voted to allow limited imports of human embryonic stem cells for research. Despite extreme opposition from some segments of the public, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said that without this decision, Germany would become "disconnected from international research." Neuropathologist and stem cell researcher Peter Breustle told Deutschlandfunk radio that a ban on stem cell imports and research "would certainly mean that we would miss catching up on this line of research. For scientists, the question would then arise whether they shouldn't go abroad."

Canada: On early March 2002, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) announced liberal guidelines for human stem cell research using surplus embryos created for in vitro fertilization. The move was widely praised, especially for the accompanying development of a well-codified national policy on stem cell research. CIHR noted that with these guidelines in place, "Canada is providing researchers and research ethics boards with a framework" from which productive work could evolve.

Australia: On April 5, 2002, Australia endorsed a national plan to allow surplus human embryos from fertility clinics to be used for stem cell research but banning the creation of new ones solely for medical research. Prime Minister John Howard agreed to reevaluate this decision in a year, with the possibility of allowing the creation of new embryo lines for research, as in Great Britain. One of the arguments that encouraged endorsement of this national policy was a threat of "scientific exodus" if stem cell research was stymied in Australia. The news was followed 5 days later (April 10) by the announcement that Australian surgeons are participating in the world's first trial to use adult stem cells to repair heart damage. Similar trials are being carried out in China. In announcing this trial, the researchers were careful to note that their work on adult stem cells is intricately tied to basic research on embryonic stem cells and that one line of research could not proceed without access to the other.

Sweden: Some of the most liberal laws governing stem cell research and cloning were passed in Sweden in early 2002, with plans for government funded research and development projects already underway.

Elsewhere: Stem cell research is also being advanced in India, China, South Korea, Israel, France, The Netherlands, Italy, and Singapore.

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