The e-conference, Mountain to Mountain Cooperation: Sustainable use of biodiversity, including genetic resources, in the Himal-Andes, (12-30 June 2006) represented a significant step in furthering inter-regional and intra-regional cooperation and of building new and strengthening existing alliances for sustainable mountain development within the framework of the Mountain Partnership. The Partnership - an evolving global network of countries, intergovernmental organisations and civil society - is committed to bettering the lives and livelihood opportunities and improving the environments of mountain regions around the world. At the Mountain Partnership Secretariat we were pleased to collaborate in June 2006 with Mountain Forum - a key member of the Mountain Partnership - to organise this important e-conference between regions which provided Partnership members as well as the larger international community as a whole with a platform in which to exchange experiences, knowledge and information about real and potential cooperation in biodiversity conservation. We appreciate this valuable contribution to regional partnership building and look forward to working together in the future to transform these words into concrete action on the ground. Papers focus on: 1) Conservation of genetic resources and indigenous farming systems for sustainable development of the Himalayas and the Andes: • Exploring the potential for South-South cooperation - past experiences, risks, opportunities and future trends • Mountain to mountain exchanges: Past and present • Mountain to mountain exchanges: The realised and potential impacts of crop introductions • Mountain to mountain exchanges: Potential opportunities for future interactions and exchanges • Mountain to mountain exchanges: Risks and caution – lessons from past experiences • Mountain to mountain exchanges: Opportunities for South-South Cooperation – the way forward 2) The legal and normative framework for the use of biodiversity and genetic resources and access and benefit sharing (ABS) policies in the Himal-Andes: • Status, key challenges and prospects for institutionalising knowledge and information exchange to strengthen South-South cooperation • The rationale and compulsions for establishing effective legal and normative frameworks and functional Access and Benefit Sharing regimes • The status of Access and Benefi t Sharing regime formulation in the Himal-Andes • Critical concerns in reconciling the need to protect against unscrupulous exploitation and enhance benefi ts that can accrue from access to genetic resources and traditional knowledge to the true custodians • Key challenges in establishing a just and effective access and benefi t sharing regime • The role of customary laws in ABS and traditional knowledge governance • Prospects and challenges for the institutionalisation of information and knowledge exchange between the Himal-Andes and beyond – Strengthening South-South cooperation Detailed proceedings of this e-conference are also available at http://www.mtnforum.org/rs/ec/ha.cfm
