Understanding the International Plant Treaty & the Nagoya Protocol: an introduction for plant breeders

International legal requirements for the collection and conservation of genetic resources have changed in recent years. Once considered the common heritage of humanity, genetic resources are now governed by international legal frameworks that have shifted ownership of these resources from the global commons to national jurisdiction. Many plant genetic resources for food and agriculture were held in the international collections of the international agricultural research centers (CGIAR) and these were transferred to the Multi-lateral System (MLS) to be held in-trust for the international community. The MLS allows genetic resources of individual crop species, noted in Annex 1 of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, to be accessed and used per the terms of the Standard Material Transfer Agreement (SMTA), which is essentially a combined MTA and licensing agreement. This multilateral system model contrasts with the bilateral system implemented under the Nagoya Protocol, where terms of access, use and benefit sharing are negotiated on an accession-by-accession basis with the country from where the accession is obtained.  Understanding this legal landscape and the implications for access to and use of genetic resources in breeding programs is particularly important for public sector breeders. This presentation will consider practical issues related to germplasm collection and conservation, applied research using genetic resources from outside the US, and research collaborations with non-US based researchers. In addition, the presentation will cover information resources available to the community to learn more, and provide information on how the research community can engage in shaping the implementation of these agreements to achieve the shared goals of improved conservation and use of genetic resources, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from their use.