This course has been developed by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity in collaboration with the United Nations Staff College with support from the Japan Biodiversity Fund.

WHO IS THIS COURSE FOR?

The course is designed to provide participants with an introduction to one of the three objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD): the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources or access and benefit-sharing.

WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?

The course will introduce participants to the basic concepts associated with access and benefit-sharing, and will provide an overview of the main policy milestones on ABS under the Convention on Biological Diversity.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

By the end of the course participants should be able to:        

• describe what genetic resources are, where they can be found and why they are useful;
• explain the meaning and importance of ABS;
• describe the key concepts and core principles underpinning ABS;
• identify the key stakeholders involved in ABS;
• describe how ABS works;
• describe the current situation with regards to ABS;
•  identify the main policy milestones on ABS under the Convention on Biological Diversity (including the Bonn Guidelines and the Nagoya Protocol;
• explain why it is important for countries to ratify the Nagoya Protocol;

Introduction to Access and Benefit-Sharing (ENGLISH) (FRENCH) (SPANISH)

This course consists of six lessons. 

• Lesson 1: Genetic resources and traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources.
• Lesson 2: Introduction to Access and Benefit-sharing.
• Lesson 3: Key concepts and principles underpinning Access and Benefit-sharing.
• Lesson 4: How Access and Benefit-Sharing works in practice.
• Lesson 5: Key steps involved in Access and Benefit-sharing.
• Lesson 6: Importance of Nagoya Protocol and ratification.