DAY 1: Thursday, March 6, 2008
09.30
Registration
10:00 to 10:40
Inaugural Session
Welcome Remark by
Dr. Nagesh Kumar, Director General, RIS, New Delhi
Inaugural Address by
Shri B. S. Parsheera, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India
Remarks by
Prof. Doris Schodder, Project Leader, GenBenefit, University of Central Lancashire
Keynote Address
Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) and International Trade and Legal Regimes
Prof. Thomas Pogge, Yale University, USA
Vote of Thanks
Dr. Vasantha Muthuswamy, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), New Delhi
10.40-11.00
Tea Break
11.00-13.00
Session I: Panel Discussion on Issues in ABS Debate
Chair: Mr. Timothy Hodges, Co-Chair, Working Group on Access and Benefit-Sharing, UN Convention on Biological Diversity, Canada
Panelists:
Overview of Negotiations at WTO Forum:
Mr. Sanjay Kumar, Former Director, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India
Overview of Negotiations at CBD Forum: Prof. Gurdial Singh Nijar, Malaysia
ABS and Human Genetics: Dr. Véronique Fournier, Director, CE Centre, Paris, France
ABS and Gender Issues: Prof. Fatima Alvarez-Castillo, University of Philippines, Manila, the Philippines
13.00-14.00
Lunch Break
14.00-15.30
Session II: Indigenous Knowledge System, ABS and Evidence from Plant based Case Studies
Chair: Dr. Fernando Casas, International Affairs Advise, Co-Chair – Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing, Colombia
San Hoodia Case and Access and Benefit Sharing: Dr. Roger Chennels, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Paper Presentation
ABS and Kani Case: Dr. Sachin Chaturvedi, RIS, New Delhi
Paper
Presentation
ABS Arragements in Peru: Dr. Bram De Jonge, Wageningen University, The Netherlands
Panelists
Dr. Balakrishna Pisupati, UNEP, Nairobi
Mr. Atul Kaushik, Advisor (Projects), CUTS International, Jaipur
Dr. S. Rajasekharan, Head, Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Kerala
15.30-16.00 Tea Break
16.00 to 17.30
Session III: Emerging ABS Trends in Human Genetics
Chair: Prof. R. Kumar, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore

ABS Issues and Icelandic Biobank: Dr. Garðar Árnason, Manchester University, UK
Paper Presentation

Majengo HIV/AIDS Research Case: Dr. Doris Schroeder and Dr. Pamela Andanda, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Paper Presentation
Panelists
Dr. Vasantha Muthuswamy, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), New Delhi
Prof. Charles Obadiah Nimma Wambebe, Chief Executive Officer, International Biomedical Research in Africa, Nigeria
Dr. Joshua Kimani, University of Nairobi, Kenya

DAY 2: Friday, March 7, 2008

09:30 - 11:00

 

Implementation of ABS and National Legal Regimes
Co-Chair: Prof. Madhav Menon, Member, Commission for Centre/State Relations, New Delhi*
Co-Chair: Dr. R. S. Rana, Member, UNEP-CBD Tech Expert Group on Tech Transfer & Chair, Bio-Links, New Delhi
Dr. Dafna Feinholz, Executive Director, National Commission of Bioethics, Mexico
Dr. Lifeng Guo, Researcher, China Academy for Science and Technology for Development (CASTED), China
Mr. Jack Beetson, Aboriginal Philosopher, Federation of Independent Aboriginal Education Providers, Australia
Dr. K. Venkataraman, Secretary, National Biodiversity Authority, Chennai
11.00-11.30 Tea Break
11:30 – 13:30
Valedictory Session: ABS Policy Lessons and Way Forward
Chair: Dr. Miltos Ladikas, University of Central Lancashire, UK
Mr. Timothy Hodges, Co-Chair, Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing (WGABS), UN Convention on Biological Diversity, Canada
Dr. Fernando Casas, International Affairs Adviser, Co-Chair – WGABS, Colombia
Dr. Sujata Arora, Director, MoEF, Government of India, New Delhi
Dr. S. K. Bhattacharya, Additional Director General, (ICMR), New Delhi
13:30
Lunch
GenBenefit Core Group Meeting at RIS