5.5 Total CLE Credits, 1.0 of which may be applied toward ethics

Course No: WSBA 162832

Modern biotechnology is science-driven enterprise dedicated to help people fight serious illness, or in some cases to fight serious problems such as world hunger. However, if used unwisely, it has a potentially discriminatory and oppressive impact on indigenous peoples. How do we promote modern biotechnology’s positive impact while insuring that the treatment of indigenous peoples and their environments is ethical, responsible and respectful?

This day-long conference examines the impact of biotechnology on the world's indigenous peoples by bringing together life-sciences leaders, attorneys and indigenous leaders to engage in a constructive dialogue about how the biotechnology industry can seek input from and protect the interests of key stakeholders and the environment as it makes important decisions regarding research and product development. Issues specifically relating to bioprospecting human and non-human materials will include:

• How should we define meaningful consent to tissue sampling, and how does the law of privacy define human genetic material?
• What is “benefit-sharing” and is it ethical and acceptable to indigenous peoples?
• What is the role of corporate governance in this dialogue? How does corporate structure and regulatory law facilitate disregard for stakeholders other than shareholders driven by a profit motive?
• How does the current patent system operate with respect to human, plant and animal cells, seeds and genetic material?
• What is the traditional worldview of indigenous peoples with respect to the same?
• What is the perspective of the life sciences community? Is there room for compromise?

901 12th Ave, P.O. Box 222000, Seattle, WA 98122-1090 (206)296-6000 Questions? Please email ipc@seattleu.edu.