A/HRC/26/19 III. Summary of the discussions A. Opening statement 6. The seminar was opened by Craig Mokhiber (Chief, Development and Economic and Social Issues Branch, OHCHR). He noted that scientific freedom had allowed those working at the cutting edge of their fields the opportunity to develop, to create and to influence the world through their work. While the idea that the benefits of advances in science should be shared was not new, it was regrettable that the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress had, in practice, been so greatly neglected over the years, with access to the benefits of scientific advancement being uneven, and the poor and marginalized being denied those benefits. He emphasized that government policy and action, failure of accountability in the private sector, poverty and poor education were among the factors implicated in that exclusion, and that the negative impact of that entrenched dynamic that set government and business against the poor and vulnerable was undeniable. In that regard, and with particular reference to the intellectual property framework, he recalled the duty of all States to meet their due diligence obligations by ensuring that human rights were not subordinated to other interests and that, when new international legal frameworks and agreements were being elaborated, comprehensive human rights impact assessments were first conducted and measures built in to safeguard human rights. 7. He welcomed the Human Rights Council’s initiative in requesting OHCHR to organize the seminar, and acknowledged the work of the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights in that area. B. Normative content of the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications: principles and practice 8. The panel discussion on the normative content was moderated by Mpazi Sinjela (University of Lusaka) and focused on the applicable legal framework. The keynote address was given by the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, Farida Shaheed. It was followed by presentations by Lea Shaver (Robert H. McKinney School of Law, Indiana University) and Jessica Wyndham (American Association for the Advancement of Science). 9. In her presentation, the Special Rapporteur noted that the right to benefit from scientific progress and its applications, “the right to science”, tended to be considered in isolation from the right to participate freely in the cultural life of the community, with which it was usually juxtaposed in relevant instruments. She indicated that, in her view, those rights were necessarily interlinked since both related to the pursuit of knowledge and understanding and to human creativity in a constantly changing world. The normative content of the right to science included access to the benefits of science by everyone, without discrimination, opportunities for all to contribute to the scientific enterprise, the freedom indispensable for scientific research, the participation of individuals and communities in decision-making, and an enabling environment fostering the conservation, development and diffusion of science and technology. 10. The Special Rapporteur identified poverty and discrimination as barriers to education and scientific enquiry, and indicated that marginalized groups such as women, children and indigenous populations were often subjected to multiple forms of discrimination in claiming their rights. With regard to research and development, it was clear that funding for private-sector research was significantly higher than public-sector funding and that governments needed to increase their investment and ensure that 4