Blue Genes - sharing and conserving the world's aquatic biodiversity
David Greer and Brian Harvey
Earthscan
September 2004
Hardback 256 pp ISBN 9781844071050
£89.00
Genetic sciences have produced a 'blue revolution' in the way we use aquatic biodiversity. By 2020 the world
will be eating more farmed than wild fish, marine bacteria may yield the cure for cancer and deep-sea
bacteria may be exploited to gobble up oil spills. Science is moving ahead at a staggering speed,
and the demand for genetic resources is growing rapidly - yet governance and policy lag far behind.
This groundbreaking work is the first to look at the issues of ownership, governance and trade in aquatic
genetic resources. Blue Genes describes the growing demand for aquatic genetic resources and the desperate
need to fill the policy vacuum for the management and conservation of aquatic biodiversity as a foundation
for rules governing access to and use of aquatic genetic resources. The book pays special attention to the
rights of indigenous and local communities providing access to those resources, and their role in managing
and conserving aquatic biodiversity. The book concludes with policy recommendations specifically tailored to
aquatic resources and uses six case studies from four continents to illustrate key issues.
Contents
Preface
The Gene Rush: Finding New Value in Aquatic Biodiversity
Managing Aquatic Biodiversity:
Tools and Policy Gaps
Whose to Share: Ownership and Control of Aquatic Genetic Resources
Thinking
Locally: Rights of Indigenous and Local Communities
Acting Globally: Towards National Laws on
Access to Aquatic Resources
Results that Count: Meaningful Benefits for Fishing Communities
