Basics of the Nagoya Protocol and DSI: from policy to practice

An introductory course on access and benefit-sharing,  the legal compliance obligations under the Nagoya Protocol for European users and the UN decisions on digital sequence information (DSI); online interactive course; lectures by experts with plenty of time to clarify questions of the participants; interactive quizzes; hands on activity /group discussion

Have you heard of the Nagoya Protocol but are unsure where to start? If you use biological materials from outside Germany, you could have legal and compliance obligations. This course provides an introductory overview of the Nagoya Protocol and international framework around access and benefit-sharing.

Benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources must be shared in a fair and equitable way. This is referred to as “access and benefit-sharing”, or ABS for short, and it is part of the global goals on conservation, restoration and sustainable use of biodiversity. It is a mechanism intended to increase the benefits from nature back to the countries with rich biological diversity. As a researcher using genetic resources in the European Union, you may have compliance obligations under ABS rules, the Nagoya Protocol and EU law, even if your research is classified as basic or non-commercial. Failure to comply can result in legal consequences, fines, confiscation of scientific results, intellectual property challenges, publication retraction, and loss of reputation. Understanding compliance is important but it can be daunting. We’re here to help!

In addition to the Nagoya Protocol, new challenges are emerging from international negotiations on DSI, which broadly refers to genomic sequence data and other related digital data (RNA, proteins). This course will examine the decisions adopted under the Convention on Biological Diversity and explore their implications for users of DSI.The Basics of the Nagoya Protocol and DSI: from policy to practice course will provide, in an interactive format, an overview on what researchers need to do, how compliance checks work and how to be prepared.  We will help you navigate the ABS world.

Image source: DFI