This collection of essays was assembled from the contributions of a broad spectrum of commentators with an interest in the confluence between intellectual property and biological resources. These leading scholars were invited to present papers at a conference in Singapore, held in December 2003, which was organized by the Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law (of the Faculty of Law at the National University of Singapore), the Singapore Academy of Law, the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore and the IP Academy. In recognition of the global character of the controversies that have emerged in this area of law, and the broad range of attendant issues that have arisen, a conscious effort was made to select scholars with expertise in different legal sub-specialties-including patent law, international environmental law, indigenous rights, traditional knowledge-and from countries in different geographical regions. The contributors to this publication hail from Singapore, China, India, Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Peru. Each provides a distinct and important perspective on the complex web of contemporary issues that policy makers have had to grapple with. By drawing together the various strands of the debates in this area of the law, it is hoped that a more complete and balanced picture would emerge of the controversies surrounding the use of the intellectual property system in the commercial exploitation of bio-organic innovation. READERSHIP: Policy makers, lawyers, researchers, tertiary students and all those interested in intellectual property & biological resources.