Digital Sequence Information: Science and Politics

Digital Sequence Information and the lack of clarity about it is a prime bugbear in global biodiversity negotiations. What is Digital Sequence Information? The Convention on Biological Diversity, adopted in 1992, put three principles in place: conservation of biodiversity, its sustainable use, and sharing of benefits earned from its use with the custodians of the biodiversity.

The third principle has lately been confounded by the use of Digital Sequence Information. Digital Sequence Information refers to genetic data such as DNA and RNA, and protein sequences of organisms which can be used instead of the actual specimens. It can be stored digitally and remotely.This has increased the fears of bio-piracy.

Efforts to set up systems to resolve the conundrum of access and benefit sharing for Digital Sequence Information have not had much success. This lack of clarity impacts the work of not only the Convention on Biological Diversity, but also of organisations like the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and the WHO.

Join us for our first Biodiversity Confab, a series of online conversations on key issues and concerns related to biodiversity and its management.

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Sukanya Nair
Email: sukanya.nair@cseindia.org
Mob. No.: 8816818864