Indigenous Knowledge, Biological Resources Policy and Ethical Bio-trade

Competitive advantage

• Globally recognised expertise in supporting Indigenous peoples and governments in the Australasia-Asia-Pacific region with the protection and promotion of Indigenous knowledge
• Able to profile industry research through patent landscaping biological resources and associated Indigenous knowledge in Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific Island countries
• Experience in coordinating regional activities and training on the Nagoya Protocol and the Convention on Biological Diversity provisions on ‘access and benefit-sharing’ (ABS) with UN agencies, the ABS Initiative, and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP)
• The skills to conduct global case studies on the impact of ABS agreements in biotrade supply chains to support improved policy-making

Impact

• Supported Pacific countries with ratification and implementation of the Nagoya Protocol, including design and implementation of permit systems
• Informed discussions and submissions in the World Trade Organization and World Intellectual Property Organization
• Assisted with reviews and reforms of Australian governments biodiscovery and biological resources regulations

Successful applications

• Presented internationally at UN forums, and other global institutions
• Made public submissions to intellectual property bodies on the protection of Indigenous knowledge
• Challenged unfair patents
• Won awards for patent profiling
• Begun developing customary protocols with interested parties in the region
• Helped with biological resource agreement-making between stakeholders

Our partners

• Regional coordinators of the ABS Capacity Development Initiative
• United Nations Environment Programme and Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (UNEP-SPREP) Regional ABS Project
• Work with Fiji, Samoa, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, and Cook Islands