ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book reviews a number of challenges and issues related to the management of biodiversity. It examines the genesis and negotiation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety respectively. The book describes the nature of the institutions created by the regime, their potential, and some of the constraints under which they operate and which they have tried to overcome. It also examines the dimensions and difficulties of the operationalization of the CBD's third objective: sharing the benefits associated with the exploitation of genetic resources. The book focuses on a specific, important, and extremely complex aspect of the operation of the Convention – its relationship with commercially-oriented agreements and regimes, in particular the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the former Undertaking on Plant Genetic Resources.
