ACCESS TO GENETIC RESOURCES AND BENEFIT - : AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN Y NATIONAL P DIVERSA C

This case study examines a benefit-sharing partnership between the Yellowstone National Park (YNP) and the Diversa Corporation under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) signed on 17 August 1997. Diversa had already been sourcing thermophilic micro-organisms from the park’s geothermal features for three years, under a series of research specimen collection permits. The CRADA creates a legal, benefit-sharing framework for Diversa’s continued work, including the development and commercialization of enzymes and other compounds discovered during investigations of samples obtained in YNP. The agreement is regarded by YNP as a ‘model’ for future partnerships of this type.