Common use of Specific Commitments Clause in Contracts

Specific Commitments. 1. Each Party shall endeavor to ensure that its laws and policies provide for and encourage high levels of environmental protection and of sustainable use and conservation of its natural resources. Each Party shall also strive to continue improving its protection levels on those matters. 2. Each Party shall endeavor to maintain its laws, regulations, and policies consistent and in compliance with multilateral environmental agreements (hereinafter referred to as "MEAs") to which it is a party, as well as with international efforts towards achieving sustainable development. 3. The Parties recognize that it is inappropriate to promote trade or investments by weakening or reducing the protections afforded in their environmental laws. Accordingly, neither Party shall waive or otherwise derogate from, or offer to waive or otherwise derogate from, such laws in a manner that weakens or reduces the protections afforded in those laws as an incentive to promote trade or investment between the Parties. The Parties recognize that it is inappropriate to use their own laws, regulations and policies in a manner that constitutes a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination between the Parties or a disguised restriction on trade or investment. 4. The Parties recognize the importance that their environmental legislations provide for a fair and transparent public participation mechanism, and therefore the Parties will promote public participation during the whole process of designing, implementing, and evaluating, environmental projects, policies, and programs, in accordance with their national legislations towards that end. 1. The Parties acknowledge paragraph 19 of the Ministerial Declaration (WT/MIN/(01)DEC/1), adopted on November 14, 2001 by the WTO Ministerial Conference, on the relationship between the TRIPS Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity (hereinafter referred to as "CBD") and the protection of genetic resources, traditional knowledge2, and folklore. 2. The Parties recognize the value and importance of biological diversity, traditional knowledge as well as the contribution of knowledge, innovations, and practices of indigenous and local communities to the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. Recognizing the sovereign rights of States over their natural resources, each Party shall have the authority to determine access to genetic resources in accordance with its legislation and endeavor to create conditions to facilitate transparent access to genetic resources for environmentally sound uses. 3. Subject to their legislations and the CBD, the Parties respect knowledge, innovations, and practices of indigenous and local communities embodying traditional lifestyles relevant to the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and promote their wider application with the involvement and approval of the holders of such knowledge, innovations, and practices. 4. Each Party shall endeavor to seek ways to share information on patent applications based on genetic resources or traditional knowledge by providing: (a) publicly accessible database that contains relevant information; and (b) opportunities to file prior art to the appropriate examining authority in writing. 5. The Parties agree to share views and information on discussions in the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge, and Folklore, the WTO TRIPS Council, and any other relevant fora in addressing matters related to genetic resources and traditional knowledge. 6. The Parties acknowledge the adoption of the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity and agree to further discuss relevant issues on genetic resources subject to future developments of multilateral agreements or their respective legislations.