Benefit sharing: Why inclusive provenance metadata matter.

Area of Science:

• Biodiversity Law and Policy
• Genomic Data Governance
• Indigenous Knowledge Systems

Background:

• The Nagoya Protocol mandates fair and equitable benefit sharing of genetic resources.
• Discussions are ongoing within the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to potentially include Digital Sequence Information (DSI) under the Protocol.
• Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLC) advocate for benefit sharing from genomic data value.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the complexities of applying Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) principles to DSI.
• To identify mechanisms for enhancing benefit sharing in the context of DSI.
• To evaluate the role of digital labeling in ensuring data provenance and community rights.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of ongoing CBD negotiations regarding DSI.
• Examination of the Nagoya Protocol's ABS principles and their applicability to digital data.
• Case study of the Traditional Knowledge and Biocultural Labels initiative, specifically BioCultural Labels (BC Labels).

Main Results:

• DSI creates a unique challenge for existing ABS frameworks, leading to varied stakeholder perspectives.
• Digital labeling systems, such as BC Labels, offer a practical solution for disclosing sample origin and ensuring provenance.
• BC Labels empower Indigenous communities to assert provenance, origin, and authority over biocultural data.

Conclusions:

• Digital labeling, particularly BC Labels, enhances transparency and accountability in genomic research.
• Implementing BC Labels supports IPLC rights and fair benefit sharing from biocultural resources and data.
• Integrating cultural metadata through digital labels adds significant value to research and data repositories.