ELSI began in 1990 as a part of the Human Genome Project and is thus part of the National Human Genome Research Institute that deals with the ethical (E), legal (L), and social (S) issues (I)—also called the Ethical, Legal, and Social Implications Research Program. It started because of the increasing availability of genetic information and represents the largest bioethics study in the world. The program funds and manages studies and supports workshops, research and policy conferences, and many more events related to these topics. In addition, HUGO, also known as the Human Genome Organization, was conceived in early 1988 at the first meeting on genome mapping and sequencing in Cold Spring Harbor, New York. It is an international consortium created to coordinate the work of human geneticists around the world and is incorporated in Geneva, Switzerland.