Dr Muriel Lightbourne is an in-house legal counsel with INRA Angers-Nantes. She was formerly a Visiting Scholar at College of Law, University of Illinois, Champaign and previously, a Senior Research Fellow, Queen Mary College, University of London. She has published widely on aspects of plants, food and intellectual property rights.

• Part I Crop Improvement and the Challenge of Food Security, Conservation and Equity; Chapter 1 Introduction; Chapter 2 Crop Improvement: The Science, the Business and the Law; Chapter 3 Conciliating Food Security and Conservation; Chapter 4 Equity; Part II The FAO International Treaty – A Necessary One?; Chapter 5 The FAO International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources: How Will the Multilateral System Work?; Chapter 6 Case Studies: Organization and Legal Framework of Seed Markets in China and Ethiopia; Chapter 7 The Global Community Needs the FAO Treaty;

'This book provides a clear and crisp analysis of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. By putting the Treaty in the broader conceptual context that informs it, this book will be a key resource for anyone interested in international law and policy concerning food security and the conservation of plant genetic resources.' Philippe Cullet, School of Oriental and African Studies - University of London, UK