In this issue:
In this written statement by Friends World Committee for Consultation to the 25th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC), Quakers ask that the Right to Food be considered in the development of new policy frameworks for trade and investment in agriculture. It calls on the HRC to encourage the design of alternative approaches to trade and investment rules with people, sustainability and food at the centre and the creation of an enabling international legal environment that supports domestic efforts towards the realization of the right to food.
Presentation shared during an off the record expert consultation convened by QUNO on a New Framework on Trade and Investment in Agriculture. Participants were invited to review of changes in food systems since the conclusion of the WTO's Agreement on Agriculture and other trade agreements, to better understand the current climate, need and potential for change so that trade and investment rules support all people's food security.
Presentation shared during an off the record expert consultation convened by QUNO on a New Framework on Trade and Investment in Agriculture. Participants were invited to review of changes in food systems since the conclusion of the WTO's Agreement on Agriculture and other trade agreements, to better understand the current climate, need and potential for change so that trade and investment rules support all people's food security.
Douillet_QUNO_2014_small.pdf 704.08 KB
Presentation shared during an off the record expert consultation convened by QUNO on a New Framework on Trade and Investment in Agriculture. Participants were invited to review of changes in food systems since the conclusion of the WTO's Agreement on Agriculture and other trade agreements, to better understand the current climate, need and potential for change so that trade and investment rules support all people's food security.
Presentation shared during an off the record expert consultation convened by QUNO on a New Framework on Trade and Investment in Agriculture. This presentation shared the results of a survey carried out by QUNO in 2013 to gather opinions of the adequacy of the current international rules which govern trade and investment in agriculture.
97.5% of survey respondents felt that the current rules are not adequate to address food security and environmental challenges.
Responses were gathered from individuals from within NGOs, States, Farmers` movements and secretariats of international institutions such as FAO and the WTO. Participants shared important issues to be addressed by the international system, also ideas for how changes can be made to achieve a system which adequately addresses food security and environmental challenges.
These briefing papers on sui generis options for plant variety protection (PVP) are to encourage and support governmental officials and others who wish to develop a PVP system that matches their country’s needs. These briefing papers are the third and fourth in a series on TRIPS-compatible alternatives to UPOV.
How can policy makers, managers and practitioners best plan in the face of complexity? Does complexity make planning an irrelevant exercise? This background note is a guide, elaborating how planning and strategy development can be carried out despite complexity.
The Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO) is working with others to explore the purpose, structure and direction of the governance of trade and investment in agriculture. To do this, we are stepping back from international negotiations relating to trade and investment in agriculture and asking questions about what an ideal framework to govern trade and investment in agriculture should look like. This document outlines QUNO's NFTIA vision.
NFTIA Vision Statement.pdf 572.39 KB A briefing paper on food, biological diversity and intellectual property for the October 2013 UPOV sessions. It urges delegates to carefully consider their countries' objectives and realities in the area of agriculture when discussing the draft Explanatory Note on the definition of 'breeder' in the UPOV Council and Committee, particularly in relation to the role that smallholder farmers play in plant breeding.
QUNO believes that by placing people’s livelihoods and dignity alongside sustainability and food security as the central objectives of agriculture trade, it is possible to envision a new framework of agricultural trade and investment rules that would better enable countries to meet peoples’ long-term food security needs and objectives. This document is a draft mapping of some of the alternatives already proposed.
The Intergovernmental Committee (IGC) of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is currently negotiating intellectual property rules around Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expressions/folklore. The implications of the draft text on small-scale farmers and food security are unclear. Here we explore the possible linkages and questions that should be further explored.
Food security is as a pressing global challenge. Agricultural innovation is critical to addressing it. Equally important is ensuring that the benefits of such innovation are widely diffused, especially in developing countries.
How should countries design their intellectual property (IP) system to encourage and support agricultural innovation?
The TRIPS Agreement provides WTO Members with flexibility to implement IP provisions in a way consistent with their agriculture and food security objectives. Yet these flexibilities have received little attention so far.
This Policy Guide seeks to fill this gap by providing an overview of TRIPS-related patent flexibilities that support agriculture and food security.
This Policy Guide is designed for negotiators and policymakers in the areas of intellectual property, agriculture and food policy as well as breeders, farmers and other members of civil society. It also intended to be a useful tool for providers and recipients of technical assistance in the areas of intellectual property and agriculture.
This is the report on the QUNO-IIED panel at the World Trade Organisation Public Forum held in September 2012 in Geneva.
QUNO Geneva's newsletter for November 2011 to February 2012. Featured stories:
- Preventing Armed Violence: the Geneva Declaration Review Conference
- The Unknown Impacts of Seeds Policies: Exploring the Effects of UPOV
- News from QUNO New York
- Watching the Climate Change Negotiations
- News in Brief, Jardins Ouverts, and Publications
Geneva Reporter, Nov 2011 - Feb 2012 417.48 KB The Geneva Environment Network and the Quaker UN Office held a roundtable discussion on intellectual property (IP) and biodiversity. Panellists considered in what ways IP rights can help preserve Biological diversity, and in what ways IP protection might undermine such diversity. They discussed some of the fora in which IP and biodiversity issues are being discussed and some likely future directions of policy and thinking in this area. QUNO has prepared this report of the discussion.
QUNO IP Biodiv.pdf 157.51 KB This is the report of a panel discussion that considered how Intellectual Property (IP) can help preserve biological diversity, and how IP might undermine such diversity. The discussion looked at some of the fora in which IP and biodiversity issues are being discussed, in particular the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Panellists pointed to some likely future directions of policy and thinking in this area.
This panel was organised by QUNO and the Geneva Environment Network.
Intellectual Property and Biodiversity 157.51 KB Introduction to QUNO's work on Food, Seeds and Intellectual Property.
The International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) influences global policy relating to agricultural research, as it is the only international organisation with responsibility for plant variety protection.
This report seeks to raise awareness about UPOV’s role and way of working. It aims to provide a point of reference around which key actors – both supportive and critical of current approaches to intellectual property (IP) protection of plants – can engage in discussions and exchange of ideas.
The report also discussion the history of Plant Variety Protection (PVP) and Plant Breeders' Rights (PBRs) as well as UPOV's relationship with the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the FAO's Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA). It also refers to discussions on disclosure of origin of genetic resources, farmers' rights and the WIPO Development Agenda.
QUNO Geneva's newsletter for November 2010 to January 2011. Featured stories:
Geneva Reporter, Nov 2010 - Jan 2011 833.77 KB 
