New Technologies in International Law / Tymofeyeva, Crhák et al.

Biological Diversity and its protocol, the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, and the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (hereinafter also as “ The High Sea Treaty ”). 3.1 Convention on Biological Diversity When it comes to biodiversity protection, the primary treaty of concern should be the Convention on Biological Diversity (hereinafter referred to as “ CBD ” or “ Convention ”). CBD is the cornerstone of the protection of biodiversity by international environmental law. It is mostly because of its framework character, and of course, because it has over 190 contractual parties. Only after the adoption of CBD was the protection of biodiversity specifically targeted. 268 Since CBD is a framework convention, it does not establish standards for the protection of biodiversity, yet it offers foundations for biodiversity protection mainly in the form of in situ conservation, but also for restoration of deteriorated ecosystems and gene bank management. 269 Technologies are an integral part of one of the main objectives of CBD. 270 On the one hand, CBD defines both biotechnology and technology, but on the other one, it does not. To explain the previous sentence, we need to look at both “definitions.” Biotechnology means “any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use.“ 271 Regarding technology itself, CBD states that “technology includes biotechnology.” 272 The main difference between these definitions is that the “technology one” does not provide any interpretation of what should be considered technology, only that it includes biotechnology. Since it does not specify, what the technology means (besides biotechnology) for the CBD, it allows us to interpret it far too broadly. The lack of proper definition has the potential to be interpreted incorrectly. To find an example, we do not have to travel far away. For example, there is an official Slovak translation of the CBD in the Notification by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic no. 34/1996 Coll. In the Slovak version, the definition of technology is interpreted completely differently: “Technology means biotechnology,” or in Slovak: “Technológia znamená biotechnológiu.” 273 As we can see, it completely changes the meaning of the word “technology.” But there is still a possibility it was just an incorrect translation, not caused by lack of definition. However, from the context of the other provisions of the Convention, definition of technology does not cover only biotechnology. IUCN Environmental Law Centre 268 Dupuy PM and Vinuales JE, International Environmental Law: Second Edition (CUP, 2018), p. 234. 269 Louka E, International Environmental Law: Fairness, Effectiveness and World Order (CUP, 2006), p. 300. 270 “[…] including by appropriate access to genetic resources and by appropriate transfer of relevant technologies, taking into account all rights over those resources and to technologies, and by appropriate funding.” Convention on Biological Diversity, June 5, 1982, reprinted in 31 ILM 822 (1992). 271 Ibid. 272 Ibid. 273 Notification by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic No. 34/1996 Coll. (1996).

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