10th March 2014, Kanglung: A seminar on the “International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA), Convention on Biological Diversity, Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing and the Bhutan Biodiversity Portal” took place at Sherubtse College, Kanglung on 10th March, 2014.
The key areas covered in the seminar were: • Biodiversity conservation and sustainable utilization initiatives in the country. • National and international conventions, treaties and legal framework on biodiversity such as the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD),International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) and the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing. • Importance of Traditional Knowledge and its documentation. • Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) and procedure for execution of MTA. • Salient features of the Bhutan Biodiversity Portal.
The seminar is part of the education and awareness series initiated by the National Biodiversity Centre (NBC) to educate and create awareness amongst academic institutions on national as well as international developments in the field of conservation and sustainable utilization of biological diversity. It is hoped that the insights that the students will gain from such seminars will hone their interests and enthusiasm in the field of biodiversity conservation and sustainable utilization.
The seminar was organized by the National Biodiversity Centre (NBC), Ministry of Agriculture and Forests and was attended by more than 200 students and Faculty members of the School of Life Science and Environmental Science of the college.
