La bioprospección entre la gobernanza Antártica y los Estados soberanos: El caso argentino genoma blanco Entre 2005 y 2015

Abstract

Over fifty years, the Antarctic Treaty favored scientific development and cooperation in a continent with «frozen sovereignties.» Currently, the Treaty faces a new challenge: the boom of bioprospection. This commercially oriented scientific activity clashes with the Antarctic governance regime insofar as it is incompatible with the Treaty principles on information exchange and scientific cooperation. To examine the tension between bioprospection and the Antarctic Treaty, this article focuses on the Genoma Blanco Project driven by the Argentine state between 2005 and 2015. I argue that, while bioprospection activities tend not to fit within the Antarctic governance principles, Genoma Blanco is a singular case that combines the principle of national sovereignty with Antarctic governance requirements. The article is based on the analysis of official documents presented by party states at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings between 2005 and 2015 as well as semi–structured interviews to stakeholders.