When knowledge goes viral: Assessing the possibility of virus‐related traditional knowledge for access and benefit‐sharing

• Published date: 01 November 2018
• Date: 01 November 2018
• Author: Michelle F. Rourke
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jwip.12100

DOI: 10.1111/jwip.12100

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

When knowledge goes viral: Assessing the

possibility of virus-related traditional knowledge

for access and benefit-sharing

Michelle F. Rourke

1,2

1

Griffith Law School, Griffith University,

Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

2

Australian Defence Force Malaria and

Infectious Disease Institute, Enoggera,

Queensland, Australia

Correspondence

Michelle F. Rourke, Griffith Law School,

Griffith University, Gold Coast, Queensland

4222, Australia.

Email: michelle.rourke@griffithuni.edu.au

Viruses, like all genetic resources, are subject to Access and

Benefit-Sharing (ABS) obligations under the Convention on

Biological Diversity (CBD) and its Nagoya Protocol. This

requires that access to genetic resources accords with

mutually agreed terms and with the prior informed consent

of providing parties. Similar conditions must be met for the

use of any Traditional Knowledge (TK) associated with

genetic resources held by Indigenous Peoples and local

communities. While there are many documented cases of TK

indirectly associated with viruses, this article will demon-

strate that there are indeed instances where TK could be

directly associated with viruses. As the utility of viruses in

various biotechnological applications becomes ever more

apparent, it is time to consider whether the TK provisions of

the CBD and Nagoya Protocol might factor into future virus

ABS agreements, and whether TK considerations might also

affect the suite of intellectual property protections currently

afforded to viruses and viral derivatives in some jurisdictions.

KEYWORDS

access to knowledge, benefit sharing, biotechnology, convention

on biological diversity

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INTRODUCTION

The Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) regimes created by the United Nations' Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)

and its Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of the Benefits Arising from their

© 2018 The Authors. The Journal of World Intellectual Property © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

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wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/jwip J World Intellect Prop. 2018;21:356–368.