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27. Options for Governing the Microbial Commons
Pages 191-200

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From page 191...
... The CGIAR centers' main concern has been with plant genetic resources, though lately we have become increasingly interested in contributing to the development of access and benefit sharing norms that support the use and conservation of other genetic resources for food and agriculture, including microbial genetic resources used in agriculture production systems and plant pathology research. In particular, we are interested in promoting the development of an internationally coordinated system for the common pooling, management and use of agricultural microbial genetic resources.
From page 192...
... Unless it was mutually agreed when the material was deposited that that the culture collection had the right to later change the MTA it uses to distribute material, the collection would have to go back to the competent authority from the depositing country to obtain permission to use the new instrument. As far as future acquisitions by culture collections are concerned, it will be necessary to obtain prior informed consent from competent authorities in the countries of origin of microbial genetic resources to redistribute those resources using the commons 192
From page 193...
... A newcomer to the field could be forgiven for thinking that these obligations rooted in the CBD should not create significant impediments for microbial genetic resources continuing to flow into the microbial commons, and that the pre-1993/post1993 divide could be bridged in ways that made it attractive for depositors to proactively place new microbial genetic diversity in the commons. However, the evidence that has been slowly accumulating since the mid-1990s reveals that providers have in fact become increasingly reluctant to make new genetic diversity available to the agricultural research community, and that this reluctance is fueled in part by access and benefit sharing issues.
From page 194...
... I have been focusing on how access and benefit sharing-related challenges have created disincentives for potential providers of plant genetic resources to make new diversity available. The situation appears to be similar with respect to microbial genetic resources for food and agriculture.
From page 195...
... Quite frankly, to me, it still seems like an unlikely scenario, no matter how practical it may be, given many developed countries' aversion to such schemes. Another, equally high-level form of intergovernmental intervention would be the creation a new legally binding international treaty on microbial genetic resources, establishing standard conditions for access and benefit sharing, a standard material transfer agreement, a common information-sharing platform, reporting schedules, tracking mechanisms, etc.
From page 196...
... Most important, the genetic agreements and related MTA would be very useful tools in the hand of national champions of an international microbial commons, allowing them to present hesitant national competent authorities with concrete, constructive options for how to administer their access and benefit sharing responsibilities. At least for an important subset of the countries genetic resources, the fact that the general policy approach (in support of international harmonized standards for pooling and facilitated access and benefit sharing)
From page 197...
... Intergovernmental processes would facilitate national competent authorities and other stakeholders to engage with their peers from other countries in a constructive, goal oriented context, setting the stage for the pursuit of common objectives through means that transcend purely national competencies. As it turns out, there are currently opportunities for engaging in such internationally sponsored discussions and for promoting ABS norms supportive of the microbial commons in at least two ongoing intergovernmental policy-making processes.
From page 198...
... This is all fairly new -- until very recently, the Commission has generally focused almost exclusively on plant genetic resources, and more recently on animal genetic resources. The fact that the Commission is widening its scope of enquiry, and possibly norm-setting, represents potentially rich opportunities for introducing consideration of access and benefit sharing norms to support the microbial commons.
From page 199...
... It is possible that some of the steam is coming out of the geopoliticization of the access and benefit-sharing of genetic resources. When you see the way Brazil, China, and India are conducting themselves in the negations of the International Regime, it may be that there is room now for a less geopoliticized discussion and more open consideration of some of these soft-law possibilities.


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