Our Activities
Our Activities (in chronological order)
2010
• ABS contracts for non-commercial academic research – two complementary models.The ABS team of the Swiss Academy of Sciences in co-operation with the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogotá will hold a joint information event during the ABS WG9 (the CBD ABS Working Group meeting) in Cali, Colombia on 23 March 2010.
The Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogotá presents its proposal of a "contrato marco" (framework contract) for Colombian research institutes aiming at doing research on national territory. The Swiss Academy of Sciences presents its draft Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) especially designed for noncommercial academic research. Both contracts will be discussed with the audience. The overall aim is to find solutions acceptable to provider and user countries in order to enable noncommercial academic research. (download presentations from CBD ABSWG9 website)
• Susette Biber-Klemm participated as a representative of public research in the CBD Meeting of the Friends of the Co-Chairs of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing, in Montreal, Canada, 26-29 January 2010.
2009
• Science-policy round table on "Access to genetic resources and benefit sharing – Challenges and opportunities for biodiversity science" on October 15th, 2009 at the DIVERSITAS Open Science Conference in Cape Town, South Africa.
• National survey to evaluate the usefulness of the publication: Good Practice for Academic Research (Jan 2009). The general feedback is positive, researchers perceive the Good Practice Manual as a useful tool to integrate ABS issues in the elaboration of research proposals.
• Second workshop concerning the “Interface” project on commercial and non-commercial research held at the Swiss Academy of Sciences, Bern, 17 March 2009.
2008
• Publication of the Good Practice brochure in Spanish and French. Download PDFs in section: Publications.
Acceso y Participación en los Beneficios – Guía de buenas prácticas para la investigación académica con recursos genéticos.
Accès et partage – guide des bonnes practiques pour la recherche universitaire sur les ressources génétiques.
• The SCNAT ABS Good Practice Manual is mentioned in the official CBD documents as a contribution of academia: http://www.cbd.int/doc/meetings/abs/abswg-07/official/abswg-07-02-en.pdf
• The SCNAT ABS Good Practice Manual is listed on the CBD website under existing instruments, guidelines and codes of conduct and tools addressing ABS: http://www.cbd.int/abs/instruments/
• Participation in the workshop on access and benefit sharing for non-commercial biodiversity research. Held at the zoological research museum Alexander König, Bonn, Germany (17-19 November 2009). Report of the Bonn Workshop (PDF, 205KB)
• Organisation and participation in a very well attended CBD Side-event during COP9 regarding non-commercial academic research. Title: Access and Benefit Sharing – Challenges and Solutions for Academic Research. 19 May 2009. (PDF, 32 KB)
• Talk and poster presentation at the PreCOP research conference: Biodiversity Research - Safeguarding the Future, Bonn, Germany (14 May 2008)
• Invited round-table panelist at CBD SBSTTA-13 regarding ABS, Taxonomic Research and und Benefit Sharing. Organized by the CBD Global Taxonomy Initiative Coordination Mechanism, Dr. Christoph Häuser and Dr. Junko Shimura ( 20 February 2008)
• Continuously being invited to hold lectures at Swiss universities and research institutes regarding ABS und academic research
• Presentation of ABS posters at several conferences in Switzerland (Information campaign, awareness raising, dissemination of knowledge).
• Publication of articles in many journals to promote the ABS Good Practice manual
• COST project submitted to coordinate an ABS project.
• First workshop for the „Interface“ project regarding non-commercial and commercial research.
• Participation in the sixth Working Group Meeting on ABS in Geneva, Switzerland. This group is negotiating the International Regime on ABS (21-25 January 2008).
2007
• Launch and promotion of a ABS consulting service for researchers in Switzerland.
• Submission of the GenEquiFair reseach proposal to the 7th EU research framework program (May 2007). The proposal was rejected due to a formal defect.
• Co-organisation of a workshop with the German Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG Research Community). Formation of the GenEquiFair network.
• Ingrid Kissling, secretary general, leaves the Swiss Academy of Sciences SCNAT in July 2007. Anne Jacob joins the SCNAT ABS team.
• Publication of several articles in journals to promote the SCNAT ABS Good Practice publication regarding academic research.
• Many lectures held at Swiss universities and research institutes regarding ABS und academic research in order to raise awareness among scientists.
• Presentation of the SCNAT ABS Good Practice publication at a workshop of the French „Institut du développement durable et du droit international“ (IDDRI) in Paris.
2006
• Publication of: Access and Benefit Sharing – Good practice for academic research on genetic resources (download PDF in section: Publications).
• Launch of http://abs.scnat.ch website, supported by a national and international media campaign since the elaborated tool are also applicable for researchers working in other countries (15 June 2009).
• Several articles published in professional journals to announce the SCNAT ABS publication.
• Presentation of the ABS project of the Swiss Academy of Sciences and the ABS Good Practice publication at a side-event during the fourth meeting of the CBD Working Group on ABS in Granada, Spain.
• Presentation on the „International Certificate of Origin and Academic Research: Experiences, Reflections, Statements“ at the European Regional Meeting on an Internationally Recognized Certificate of Origin/Source/Legal Provenance, Isle of Vilm, Germany, 25. October 2006. Organized by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation.
• Publication in „Medicus Mundi” by Susette Biber-Klemm
2005
• Elaboration of an ABS manual for scientists: Access and Benefit Sharing – Good practice for academic research on genetic resources.
• International Workshop held at the Centre de Recherches Scientifiques in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, to discuss the draft of the Good Practice Manual with researchers in Africa (22-25 August 2005)
• Consultation of the draft in the ABS project Advisory and Steering Group.
• Presentation at the workshop „Implementing the Bonn Guidelines by Specific User Groups“ Published in: “Access and Benefit-Sharing of Genetic Resources – Ways and means for facilitating biodiversity research and conservation while safeguarding ABS provisions” Report of an international workshop in Bonn, Germany held in 2005, 8-10 November, Vilm, Germany. German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation
BfN-Skripten 163, 2005. (591 kB)
• Elaboration of Recommendation of the Swiss Academy of Science on behalf of Access and Benefit Sharing of Genetic Resources ABS, December 2005. (64 KB)
2004
• Presentation of the ABS project at the meeting of the German „Arbeitskreis Biodiversitätsforschung: Ressourcenzugang und gerechter Vorteilsausgleich“ of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft DFG (2 July 2004, Göttingen, Germany)
• Survey among Swiss universities and research institutions regarding the state of knowledge and existing experiences on ABS among researchers ins Switzerland. Compilation of past and present biodiversity research projects affected by ABS.
• Worksjop to evaluate the first draft of the ABS project at the conference of the “International Association for the Study of the Commons” in Oaxaca, Mexico.
2003
• The Swiss Academy of Sciences accepts the first mandate of the Swiss Agency of the Environment (François Pythoud) to elaborate an instrument to implement the Bonn Guidelines among academia in Switzerland. Team members are: Ingrid Kissling (secretary general Swiss Academy of Sciences SCNAT, Susette Biber (University of Basel), and Sylvia Martinez (Swiss Biodiversity Forum, SCNAT)
