Biopiracy

COP15 Biopiracy: The fight for fairness in the scientific exploitation of natural resources Countries from the Global South are demanding that wealthy nations share the benefits of the biological resources extracted from their lands that are then used for medical, agricultural or industrial purposes. Known as “biopiracy”, the issue is a major roadblock at the UN’s COP15 talks on biodiversity. Read more In 2016, Indian environmental activist “A patent is a right of an inventor to exclude anyone else from making, using, selling, distributing what is invented. The problem is that, when it comes to seed, seed is not an invention,” she said, going on to explain that seeds had been exchanged long before the arrival of patents. “But then you come to me and you take the seed. And then you patent it and say, ‘I created it and now you pay me royalties.’ That’s biopiracy.” Natural resources like seeds, plants, animals and even chemical compounds found in bioresource-rich countries have long been extracted by wealthy nations during periods of Patented and exported, such resources have led to breakthrough discoveries in medicine, agriculture, even cosmetics. Many of these discoveries wouldn’t have been possible without drawing on traditional knowledge from local indigenous communities, who have often been Now with the advent of technological advances like It’s a roadblock so thorny that it could stifle the global agreement on nature loss currently being negotiated at the The Nagoya Pro...

Working at Novotech Novotech is the leading Asia-Pacific contract research organisation (CRO) providing clinical development services across all clinical trial phases and therapeutic areas and global product development and regulatory affairs consulting through our in-house Novotech Drug Development Consulting team. Bioprospecting is the search for and the commercialisation of new products that have been sourced from nature. While biopiracy is when researchers and scientists use sources from nature and traditional knowledge without permission and exploit the indigenous cultures they’re getting their information from. Since the 1970s, The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) have recognised the importance of utilising and integrating the knowledge of indigenous communities from around the world to improve global health. This has led to the global patenting of ingredients, drug development and product commercialisation. The World Trade Organization (WTO) member states have to implement intellectual property rights protections; however, these processes are often beyond the understanding of indigenous communities and limit their access to legal rights. The search for areas with the greatest biological diversity often leads to some of the world’s poorest countries, which end up being hit hardest by biopiracy. Regulations There are many regulations that tie in with bioprospecting and biotechnology. Thes...

Abstract This Article provides afresh and multi-dimensioned approach to a long-standing claim of biopiracy patents made by developing countries and communities. The basic principles of patent law and policy are first established to provide a foundation from which to evaluate the claim that genetic resources and traditional knowledge from developing countries are being misappropriated in a variety of ways that are loosely referred to as biopiracy. The Article distinguishes rhetoric from reality in examining biopiracy allegations from the perspective of national patent laws, as well as international agreements. In addition, the Article explains the underlying conflicts, misconceptions, and historical biases that have predisposed some to biopiracy claims. Similarly, the Article presents a new perspective on how the present landscape of international agreements, as well as negotiation stances, has failed to lead to satisfactory resolution of biopiracy claims despite years of heated discussion within major international forums, including the World Trade Organization, the United Nations, and the Convention on Biological Diversity. In addition to explaining the dynamics behind the current stalemate, this Article provides a template for moving forward. As a first step, the Article advocates that the piracy lingo be jettisoned and that substantive discussion instead focus on issues that have mutual appeal to all countries. Drawing upon past success of issue-framing in the context o...

Abstract Biopiracy as “a silent disease” is hardly detectable because it does not leave traces frequently. The corporate hijacking of food is the most important health hazard in this era; giant commercial enterprises are using intellectual property rights to patent indigenous medicinal plants, seeds, genetic resources, and traditional medicines. The new era of biotechnology relies on the genes of living organisms as raw materials. The “Gene Rush” has thus become similar to that of the old “Gold Rush.” Sri Lanka has been spotted in the top 34 biodiversity hotspots globally. Moreover, localized in the tropics, human generations in Sri Lanka have utilized the array of plant species for herbal treatments and treatment of diseases. Sri Lanka after its 30-year civil war is moving towards a solid growth and conservation of the environment which is a major component in a sustainable development where the conservation of biodiversity plays a significant role. In this paper, we present an overview of typical cases of global biopiracy, bioprospecting via introduction of cost-effective deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) fingerprinting and international protocol with Private-Public-People Partnership concept as excellent forms of utilization of natural resources. We propose certain perspectives as scientists towards abolishing biopiracy and also to foster the fair utilization of natural resources; since the economy of most developing countries is agriculture based, the gross domestic product ...

The Geneva biodiversity conference in Switzerland, where the use of digital sequence information emerged as a key point of difference between the parties. Photograph: IISD/ENB The Geneva biodiversity conference in Switzerland, where the use of digital sequence information emerged as a key point of difference between the parties. Photograph: IISD/ENB A standoff over biopiracy is threatening to derail a global agreement to halt the loss of nature, with developing countries demanding they are paid for drug discoveries and other commercial products based on their biodiversity. During negotiations in Geneva for a Paris-style agreement on nature, which ended this week, the use of genetic data in a digital form – known as digital sequence information (DSI) – arose as a clear point of division, with African countries insisting any deal must include a financial mechanism to compensate them for discoveries using digital forms of their biodiversity. At Cop15 – the 15th conference of the parties to the UN convention on biological diversity – governments will negotiate new targets to protect biodiversity for this decade. The accord, “a Why is it a big deal? Time is running out to take action. An international group of scientists, including Prof Paul Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb, warned in January 2021 that the planet is facing a “ghastly future of mass extinction, declining health and climate-disruption upheavals” that threaten human survival. The world has Are only governmen...

Have you ever gone on a treasure hunt? You might have read pirate stories involving adventures of finding (or rather, stealing) shiny chests full of gold, precious gems, and other valuable items. However, some types of treasure may not be in the form of gold - but there are still people who want to steal them. Biopiracy is a type of theft of natural, or biological resources. Typically, this happens when a wealthy nation or company tries to make a profit selling something that other (usually poorer) people have used for centuries. This is considered unethical, or similar to stealing, because these profits are not shared with the people who discovered or developed these resources in the first place. On top of that, companies often take legal action that prevents anyone else from using or benefitting from the resources. Think of it this way - imagine your grandmother has a special way of making garam masala at home. It is so tasty that lots of your friends and relatives regularly visit her to get some of it for their own use. If a company were to suddenly patent this specific masala mix, not only would your grandmother be unable to make or distribute it anymore, she would also have to pay money to buy it for her own use. Wouldn't that be really unfair? Do you add turmeric to your dishes when cooking? Have you ever been told to chew on some cloves to cure a toothache? There are several practices that we do, often without a second thought, that is actually ancient knowledge tha...

In the 1570s, a physician named Francisco Hernández led the first colonial scientific expedition to the New World. He traveled Mexico collecting plants that might prove valuable in curing European diseases. Since Hernández was clueless when it came to the properties of local plant species, he depended on knowledgeable indigenous healers who guided him to medicinal plants.September 4, 2007 In the 1570s, a physician named Francisco Hernández led the first colonial scientific expedition to the New World. He traveled Mexico collecting plants that might prove valuable in curing European diseases. Since Hernández was clueless when it came to the properties of local plant species, he depended on knowledgeable indigenous healers who guided him to medicinal plants. Today, indigenous rights activists have a name for what Dr. Hernández did: they call it “biopiracy,” while some prefer the more neutral, “bioprospecting.” Both terms refer to the collection of biological matter from biodiverse regions by corporations for the purpose of extracting useful genetic or biochemical resources that have a profitable and patentable commercial application. Since the wealth of the globe’s biodiversity is mostly concentrated in equatorial regions, bioprospecting is mainly conducted in Third World countries. But like Dr. Hernández, modern scientists depend on knowledgeable locals—namely, campesinos and indigenous peoples—to work as guides or plant collectors that help narrow the plant species screene...

Author • Janna Rose Chercheuse en développement durable, sciences sociales et technologie, Grenoble École de Management (GEM) Disclosure statement Janna Rose does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Partners Languages • English • As genetic research becomes more sophisticated, so does our ability to use plants and animals to develop new drugs or modify crops to meet food security needs. Often, in the search for new bioresources, researchers draw on local people’s traditional knowledge about the properties of a particular plant, animal or chemical compound. When researchers use traditional knowledge without permission, or exploits the cultures they’re drawing from – it’s called Biopiracy happens when researchers or research organisations take biological resources without official sanction, largely from less affluent countries or marginalised people. Biopiracy is not limited to drug development. It also occurs in agricultural and industrial contexts. Indian products such as the Turmeric: patented by the University of Mississippi in 1995. A less politically charged word for biopiracy is bioprospecting. This is more commonly used by research groups who attempt to search for biological resources in a legal and respectful manner. Sadly, not many positive examples of bioprospecting exist. Ideally, it involves ethi...