ABOUT THE COURSE:
Protecting biological diversity has traditionally been associated with the lives and cultures of communities living in any specified region. More than half of the world’s medicines are derived from plants and as such humans have used biodiversity for many purposes. There has been tremendous overexploitation of genetic resources by industries etc., leading to their reduction and associated effects on the environment and the human life. Following the formation of WTO as well as introduction of TRIPS, biodiversity representing ‘knowledge’ has received a new definition under intellectual property. Initial discussions at the Earth summit at Rio culminating in the Convention on Biodiversity has led to the realization of greater protection of genetic resources and the need for access as well as benefit sharing. Biodiversity Governance is directly connected to the sustenance of all major industry sectors, livelihood of rural population and the survival of mankind. The international, regional and domestic laws in this area have undergone significant transition in the last two decades. As a well-crafted topic equally balanced between its theoretical and practical realms, this course intends not only to create an awareness and knowledgebase about the regime of biodiversity protection, but also to enlighten the learner about the scope and ambit in pursuing one’s career options in the same spectrum. This course aims at touching base on the essential areas of compliance with domestic and global Biodiversity Governance Regulations, regulatory and approval mechanisms operating in this area, and the procedure and practice nuances which can help in crafting a career in compliance practice.
Protecting biological diversity has traditionally been associated with the lives and cultures of communities living in any specified region. More than half of the world’s medicines are derived from plants and as such humans have used biodiversity for many purposes. There has been tremendous overexploitation of genetic resources by industries etc., leading to their reduction and associated effects on the environment and the human life. Following the formation of WTO as well as introduction of TRIPS, biodiversity representing ‘knowledge’ has received a new definition under intellectual property. Initial discussions at the Earth summit at Rio culminating in the Convention on Biodiversity has led to the realization of greater protection of genetic resources and the need for access as well as benefit sharing. Biodiversity Governance is directly connected to the sustenance of all major industry sectors, livelihood of rural population and the survival of mankind. The international, regional and domestic laws in this area have undergone significant transition in the last two decades. As a well-crafted topic equally balanced between its theoretical and practical realms, this course intends not only to create an awareness and knowledgebase about the regime of biodiversity protection, but also to enlighten the learner about the scope and ambit in pursuing one’s career options in the same spectrum. This course aims at touching base on the essential areas of compliance with domestic and global Biodiversity Governance Regulations, regulatory and approval mechanisms operating in this area, and the procedure and practice nuances which can help in crafting a career in compliance practice.
INTENDED AUDIENCE: Undergraduate and postgraduate students of Biotechnology, Life science subjects & law, Legal practitioners at various courts of law, corporate legal professionals, Legal professionals working in various governmental/ regulatory services, IPR enthusiasts who want expand their horizons of knowledge.
PREREQUISITES: Preferably Graduate/Post Graduate Student of Biotechnology, Life science, Public Policy and Law. PhD Students also can take this who research on environmental and biodiversity matters
INDUSTRY SUPPORT: All Bio-based Industry Sectors – Agriculture / Biotechnology/ Pharma / Fertilizers & Pesticides / Cosmetics & Fragrances/ Foods& Beverages and AYUSH Industry.
Summary
| Course Status : | Upcoming |
| Course Type : | Core |
| Duration : | 8 weeks |
| Category : |
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| Credit Points : | 2 |
| Level : | Undergraduate/Postgraduate |
| Start Date : | 24 Jul 2023 |
| End Date : | 15 Sep 2023 |
| Enrollment Ends : | 31 Jul 2023 |
| Exam Registration Ends : | 18 Aug 2023 |
| Exam Date : | 24 Sep 2023 IST |
Note: This exam date is subjected to change based on seat availability. You can check final exam date on your hall ticket.
Course layout
Week 1: Concept and Scope of biodiversity protection
1. Concept and Scope of biodiversity protection
2. Types of biodiversity, mega-biodiverse centers,
3. Type of bio-resources, conservation mechanisms
4. International resources/centers of conservation
5. Traditional Resource rights, ecosystem measures
Week 2: Protection of Biological diversity: International mandate
1. Overview of International framework
2. Convention on Biodiversity – Objectives and Articles
3. International Regime on ABS
4. Biodiversity and Climate Change
5. Biobanks – Governance issues
Week 3: Protection of Biological Diversity -Indian position
1. The Biological Diversity Act, 2002
2. Regulatory authorities in India – NBA & SBB
3. Biodiversity Management Committees
4. People Biodiversity Registers
5. ABS Regulation and Benefit Sharing Procedures in India
Week 4: CBD, TRIPS and other treaties relevant to biodiversity protection – Interrelationship and Developments
1. Trade regime and Biodiversity
2. Comparison of Biodiversity Laws of countries
3. TRIPS-CBD relation
4. CBD and relation to other international treaties related to environment and organization of related bodies
5. Interrelationship and new Developments
Week 5: Biodiversity and Intellectual Property Rights
1. Biodiversity and Interface with IPR
2. Challenges related to Bio piracy – Case Studies
3. Patenting Biodiversity – Recent trends and Developments
4. Disclosure Requirements in Patent – Comparative Perspective
5. Regulatory Law – Comparative Perspective
Week 6: Plant Breeding and breeders’ right v the farmers’ right
1. Concept, Definitions and Criteria for Plant Variety Protection.
2. Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Right 2001 – Major provisions of the Act
3. Plant Variety protection in US, EU, Japan, China etc.,
4. International Union for protection of new plant varieties (UPOV)
5. Farmers’ Rights – other country models
Week 7: Biodiversity Governance and Compliance Procedures – Comparative Perspective
1. Principles of Biodiversity Governance
2. Compliance Procedures and Linkage with IPR
3. Compliance Procedures under International Framework
4. Compliance Procedures in India
5. Compliance Procedures in EU
Week 8: Biodiversity and Human Wellbeing
1. Biodiversity and Interrelationship with Life
2. Sustainable Development Agenda
3. Biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, ecosystem services
4. Biodiversity and Human Happiness
5. Nature Protects if She is Protected
Books and references
1.Genetic resources, traditional knowledge and the law. Eds. Evanson.C. Kamau, Gerd Winter
2.The governance of genetic information. Who decides? Eds. Heather Widdows and Caroline Mullen
3.Plant Variety and Farmer Rights Act 2001, India
4.Intellectual Property Rights in Agricultural biotechnology. 2nd Edition. F. H. Erbisch and K. M. Maredia. CABI Publishing.
(This is only an indicative list. Instructors will share specific course material)
2.The governance of genetic information. Who decides? Eds. Heather Widdows and Caroline Mullen
3.Plant Variety and Farmer Rights Act 2001, India
4.Intellectual Property Rights in Agricultural biotechnology. 2nd Edition. F. H. Erbisch and K. M. Maredia. CABI Publishing.
(This is only an indicative list. Instructors will share specific course material)
Instructor bio
Prof. Padmavati Manchikanti
IIT Kharagpur
Prof. Padmavati Manchikanti With more than sixteen years of teaching and research experience, Prof. M. Padmavati teaches the subjects of Patent Law, Patent Procedure and Drafting, Biodiversity Law and TK protectionto undergraduate and master students of law at IIT Kharagpur. Her primary area of research includes Intellectual Property and Commercialization of recombinant and herbal drugs and Drug Regulation, Biodiversity Law, studies on implementation of IP. Prior to joining IIT Kharagpur, she was a Senior Scientist at Monsanto Research Center, Bangalore where she coordinated invention disclosure activities. She has many research as well as consultancy projects, from Ministry of Human Resource Development, DST etc,. She has been awarded the Microsoft–Young Faculty Scholarship in Intellectual Property. She is an Advisor to the IPR Cell, IIT Kharagpur. She is the Course Coordinator of the KIRAN-IPR Program at IIT Kharagpur. She has guided research of masters as well as doctoral students in the area of biodiversity implementation in India and works on the protection of TK in India. She has been an Observer to the 2018 COP meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity and is a regular contributor for the CBD report for the Year Book of International Environmental Law. She is also an Editorial Board member of Journal of Intellectual Property Rights (JIPR) and Journal of Integrative Medicine. She has been an invited speaker at various international as well as national conferences.
Prof. Narendran Thiruthy
Prof. Narendran Thiruthy is Assistant Professor in Rajiv Gandhi School of Intellectual Property Law, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. Before joining the faculty of IIT Kharagpur, he served as the head for IPR Section in National Biodiversity Authority, Government of India. He has both theoretical expertise and administrative experience in the field of IPR and Biodiversity governance. Dr.Narendran coordinated the ‘Module on Biodiversity Governance’ for IFS Probationers in Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, Dehradun for the years 2018, 2019, 2020 & 2021. He was the officer in-charge of coordinating the India Biodiversity Awards for IBA 2018 & IBA 2021 cycles and the NBA-UNDP Biodiversity Samrakshan Internship Program in 2019-20 & 2020-21. He has delivered many lectures on Intellectual Property Rights and Biodiversity Law in various forums including in United Nations CBD events. He has also represented the government in many bilateral and multilateral meetings. Narendran’s research explores the intersection of law, technology and environment. His research areas include IP Philosophy, Protection of Cultural Property, IP procedure, IP Business models, New Technology Developments and IP, Theories of Creativity, Biodiversity Governance etc. He is currently exploring the challenges of DSI for biodiversity governance and Business models for open collaborative research
Course certificate
The course is free to enroll and learn from. But if you want a certificate, you have to register and write the proctored exam conducted by us in person at any of the designated exam centres.
The exam is optional for a fee of Rs 1000/- (Rupees one thousand only).
Date and Time of Exams: 24 September 2023 Morning session 9am to 12 noon; Afternoon Session 2pm to 5pm.
Registration url: Announcements will be made when the registration form is open for registrations.
The online registration form has to be filled and the certification exam fee needs to be paid. More details will be made available when the exam registration form is published. If there are any changes, it will be mentioned then.
Please check the form for more details on the cities where the exams will be held, the conditions you agree to when you fill the form etc.
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