ABSTRACT
This chapter shows that the answer can depend on the location and the purpose of the use of, and the temporal link between, the physical and the digital resource in question. It considers the question by firstly outlining the extent to which the access and benefit sharing (ABS) of Antarctica's in situ and ex situ genetic resources is regulated under the Antarctic Treaty System. The chapter also considers the bilateral territorial approaches to ABS under the United Nations' Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from Their Utilization to the CBD. It examines the multilateral cooperative commons approaches under the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture and the proposed New Instrument under United Nations' Convention on the Law of the Sea.
