Biodiversity prospecting: Lessons and prospects

Introduction of the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity and the growth of biotechnology processes have recently led anthropologists into the rapid ly moving, ethically and philosophically challenging field of bioprospectin g or exploring biological diversity for commercially valuable genetic and b iochemical resources. Is bioprospecting an innovative mechanism that will ( a) help produce new therapeutics and preserve traditional medical systems, (b) conserve both biological and cultural diversity by demonstrating their medical, economic, and social values, and (c) bring biotechnology and other benefits to biodiversity-rich but technology poor countries? Or is biopros pecting yet another form of colonialism-"bioimperialism"-wherein the North rips off the South's resources and intellectual property rights? This artic le reviews the current literature on bioprospecting that lies somewhere bet ween current polemics and calls for more anthropological research into the bioprospecting process.