Use and misuse of material transfer agreements: lessons in proportionality from research, repositories, and litigation.

Material transfer agreements exist to facilitate the exchange of materials and associated data between researchers as well as to protect the interests of the researchers and their institutions. But this dual mandate can be a source of frustration for researchers, creating administrative burdens and slowing down collaborations. We argue here that in most cases in pre-competitive research, a simple agreement would suffice; the more complex agreements and mechanisms for their negotiation should be reserved for cases where the risks posed to the institution and the potential commercial value of the research reagents is high.

Implementing socially responsible licensing for global health: beyond neglected diseases.

Global health efforts require socially responsible licensing that permits wide-ranging access to inventions that address health challenges beyond the so-called neglected diseases. Our analysis suggests that universities that excel in global health innovation are less likely to have global-access licensing policies in place. This trend can slow access to new clinical products and diminish the ability of universities to address their public missions.

Monitoring compliance with high-level commitments in health: the case of the CARICOM Summit on Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases.

The CARICOM Summit on Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases - the first government summit ever devoted to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) - was convened by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in Trinidad and Tobago in September 2007. Leaders in attendance issued the declaration of Port of Spain, a call for the prevention and control of four major NCDs and their risk factors. An accountability instrument for monitoring compliance with summit commitments was developed for CARICOM by the University of the West Indies in 2008 and revised in 2010. The instrument - a one-page colour-coded grid with 26 progress indicators - is updated annually by focal points in Caribbean health ministries, verified by each country's chief medical officer and presented to the annual Caucus of Caribbean Community Ministers of Health. In this study, the G8 Research Group's methods for assessing compliance were applied to the 2009 reporting grid to assess each country's performance. Given the success of the CARICOM Summit, a United Nations high-level meeting of the General Assembly on the prevention and control of NCDs was held in September 2011. In May 2013 the World Health Assembly adopted nine global targets and 25 indicators to measure progress in NCD control. This study shows that the CARICOM monitoring grid can be used to document progress on such indicators quickly and comprehensibly. An annual reporting mechanism is essential to encourage steady progress and highlight areas needing correction. This paper underscores the importance of accountability mechanisms for encouraging and monitoring compliance with the collective political commitments acquired at the highest level.

Le Sommet de la CARICOM sur les maladies chroniques non transmissibles ­ le premier sommet gouvernemental entièrement consacré aux maladies non transmissibles (MNT) ­ a été organisé par la Communauté des Caraïbes (CARICOM) à Trinité-et-Tobago en septembre 2007. Les dirigeants présents ont publié la déclaration de Port-of-Spain, un appel pour la prévention et la lutte contre les quatre principales MNT et leurs facteurs de risque.Un instrument de responsabilisation pour le contrôle du respect des engagements du sommet a été développé pour la CARICOM par l'Université des Antilles en 2008 et modifié en 2010. L'instrument ­ une grille de codes couleur tenant sur une page et comportant 26 indicateurs de progression ­ est mis à jour chaque année par points focaux dans les ministères de la Santé des Caraïbes, vérifié par le chef du service médical de chaque pays et présenté au Conseil annuel des ministres de la Santé de la Communauté des Caraïbes. Dans cette étude, les méthodes du Groupe de recherche G8 pour évaluer la conformité ont été appliquées à la grille de rapport de 2009 pour évaluer la performance de chaque pays.Compte tenu du succès du Sommet de la CARICOM, une réunion de haut niveau des Nations unies de l'Assemblée générale sur la prévention et la lutte contre les MNT a eu lieu en septembre 2011. En mai 2013, l'Assemblée mondiale de la santé a adopté 9 objectifs mondiaux et 25 indicateurs afin de mesurer les progrès dans le domaine de la lutte contre les MNT. Cette étude montre que la grille de contrôle de la CARICOM peut être utilisée pour rendre compte des progrès sur ces indicateurs de manière rapide et compréhensible. Un mécanisme de rapport annuel est essentiel pour encourager les progrès constants et mettre en relief les zones nécessitant des corrections. Cet article souligne l'importance des mécanismes de responsabilisation pour encourager et contrôler le respect des engagements politiques collectifs acquis au plus haut niveau.

En septiembre de 2007 la Comunidad del Caribe (CARICOM) convocó en Trinidad y Tobago la Cumbre de CARICOM sobre enfermedades crónicas no transmisibles, la primera cumbre gubernamental dedicada a las enfermedades no transmisibles (ENT). Los líderes que asistieron publicaron la Declaración de Puerto España, un llamamiento a la prevención y el control de cuatro ENT principales y sus factores de riesgo.En 2008, la Universidad de las Indias Occidentales desarrolló un instrumento de rendición de cuentas para supervisar el cumplimiento de los compromisos de las cumbres para CARICOM, el cual se revisó en 2010. Los centros de coordinación de los ministerios de salud del Caribe actualizan cada año dicho instrumento, una red con código de color de una página con 26 indicadores de progreso, mientras que el director médico de cada país lo verifica y se presenta al Grupo anual de Ministros de Salud de la Comunidad del Caribe. En este estudio, se aplicaron los métodos del Grupo de Investigación del G-8 para la evaluación del cumplimiento a la red de información de 2009, a fin de evaluar la actuación de cada país.A raíz del éxito de la Cumbre de CARICOM, en septiembre de 2011 se celebró una reunión de alto nivel de la Asamblea General de las Naciones Unidas sobre la prevención y control de las ENT. En mayo de 2013 la Asamblea Mundial de la Salud adoptó nueve objetivos globales y 25 indicadores para medir el progreso en el control de las enfermedades no transmisibles. Este estudio muestra que la red de vigilancia de CARICOM puede utilizarse para documentar el progreso de forma rápida y clara en base a estos indicadores. Es esencial disponer de un mecanismo de presentación de informes anual para impulsar un progreso constante y resaltar las áreas que deben corregirse. Este documento destaca la importancia de los mecanismos de rendición de cuentas para promover y controlar el cumplimiento de los compromisos políticos colectivos adquiridos al máximo nivel.

Access and benefits sharing of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge in northern Canada: understanding the legal environment and creating effective research agreements.

BACKGROUND: Research in northern Canada focused on Aboriginal peoples has historically benefited academia with little consideration for the people being researched or their traditional knowledge (TK). Although this attitude is changing, the complexity of TK makes it difficult to develop mechanisms to preserve and protect it. Protecting TK becomes even more important when outside groups become interested in using TK or materials with associated TK. In the latter category are genetic resources, which may have commercial value and are the focus of this article. OBJECTIVE: This article addresses access to and use of genetic resources and associated TK in the context of the historical power-imbalances in research relationships in Canadian north. DESIGN: Review. RESULTS: Research involving genetic resources and TK is becoming increasingly relevant in northern Canada. The legal framework related to genetic resources and the cultural shift of universities towards commercial goals in research influence the environment for negotiating research agreements. Current guidelines for research agreements do not offer appropriate guidelines to achieve mutual benefit, reflect unequal bargaining power or take the relationship between parties into account. CONCLUSIONS: Relational contract theory may be a useful framework to address the social, cultural and legal hurdles inherent in creating research agreements.