Breaking News, Business, Financial and Economic News, World News from EconoTimes

Become a contributor

Bookmark Econotimes

Fri, Dec 05, 2025 08:40 AM All times are UTC

Follow Series

©Econometrics LLC . All Rights Reserved.

David Jefferson

Research Fellow, The University of Queensland
Dr David Jefferson is a Research Fellow with the 'Harnessing Intellectual Property to Build Food Security' ARC Laureate Project at The University of Queensland School of Law. His research centres on the intersection of intellectual property and related legal regimes on agricultural and food systems. David has several current projects. One area of work focuses on issues related to the governance of native genetic resources that are relevant to the development of uniquely Australian foods. Another line of inquiry that David is pursuing relates to re-imagining systems of intellectual property for plants in ways that would be more 'ecological', by integrating with novel legal concepts such as the rights of nature. Finally, David is studying the impact of the institutionalisation of the notion of food sovereignty on domestic laws for the ownership and circulation of seeds. David's primary research sites are in Australia and Latin America.

David holds a PhD from The University of Queensland School of Law, a Juris Doctorate (JD) degree from the University of California, and a Masters of Arts in Community Psychology from Suffolk University. He is licensed to practice law before the State Bar of California, USA. David has engaged in legal research and practice in the areas of intellectual property, agriculture, genetic resources governance, and biotechnology for numerous years, including as a member of the Public Intellectual Property Resource for Agriculture (PIPRA) (USA) and in collaboration with the UC Davis Chile Life Sciences Innovation Center (Chile) and the Northwest Center for Biological Research (Mexico).

In 2016, David received a United States Fulbright Fellowship to study the making of a new intellectual property law in Ecuador.

The case of the pirated blueberries: courts flex new muscle to protect plant breeders' intellectual property

Dec 01, 2019 03:35 am UTC| Insights & Views Law

A few weeks ago, the Federal Court of Australia ordered a farmer in New South Wales to pay A$290,000 to a blueberry-producing company because he had grown and sold a proprietary variety of the fruit without...

Economy

Germany’s Economic Recovery Slows as Trade Tensions and Rising Costs Weigh on Growth

Germanys economic outlook remains cautious, with a new forecast from the German Economic Institute (IW) indicating only modest improvement in 2025 as global trade falters and domestic financial pressures intensify....

Japan’s Nikkei Drops as Markets Await Key U.S. Inflation Data

Japans Nikkei 225 slid on Friday, erasing its gains for the week and diverging from mostly positive Asian markets as investors turned cautious ahead of a crucial U.S. inflation reading that could influence the Federal...

Europe Confronts Rising Competitive Pressure as China Accelerates Export-Led Growth

Europe is facing growing competitive pressure from China as Beijing intensifies its export-driven growth strategy, a shift Goldman Sachs says is reshaping the outlook for several major European industries. The bank...

Citi Sets Bullish 2026 Target for STOXX 600 as Fiscal Support and Monetary Easing Boost Outlook

Citigroup has raised its outlook for European equities, setting a 2026 year-end target of 640 for the STOXX 600 index. The forecast suggests a potential 10.5% upside from Thursdays close, reflecting growing confidence in...

Dollar Weakens Ahead of Expected Federal Reserve Rate Cut

The U.S. dollar hovered near a five-week low on Friday as global investors positioned themselves for a widely anticipated Federal Reserve rate cut next week. The greenback remained under pressure across major currencies,...

Politics

Australia and Japan Strengthen Defence Cooperation Amid Rising Regional Tensions

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles will travel to Japan on Saturday for high-level defence talks with his counterpart, Shinjiro Koizumi, as both nations deepen security cooperation in response to growing regional...

U.S. Justice Department Orders Intensified Probe Into Antifa and Domestic Extremist Groups

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has directed federal law enforcement agencies to significantly ramp up investigations into the antifa movement and other groups deemed potential domestic extremist threats, according to an...

Honduras Election Turmoil Deepens as Nasralla Alleges Fraud in Tight Presidential Race

Honduras fiercely contested presidential election entered a new phase of tension after centrist candidate Salvador Nasralla accused authorities of fraud when rival Nasry Asfura of the National Party overtook him in the...

U.S. Expected to Expand Travel Ban to More Than 30 Countries

The United States is preparing to significantly widen its travel ban, with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirming that the list will soon include more than 30 countries. Speaking on Fox News The Ingraham...

Hong Kong Faces Low Turnout in “Patriots-Only” Election Amid Public Grief After Deadly Fire

Hong Kong is bracing for a significantly low voter turnout in Sundays patriots-only Legislative Council election, as the city continues to mourn the deadliest fire it has seen in decades. The blaze, which erupted in a...

Science

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Cogent Biosciences Soars 120% on Breakthrough Phase 3 Results for Bezuclastinib in GIST Treatment

Cogent Biosciences (NASDAQ: COGT) shares skyrocketed over 120% after the biotech company announced groundbreaking results from its Phase 3 PEAK trial evaluating bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib for patients with...

Trump and Merck KGaA Partner to Slash IVF Drug Costs and Expand Fertility Coverage

U.S. President Donald Trump and German pharmaceutical company Merck KGaA have announced a groundbreaking deal aimed at lowering the cost of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments while boosting access to fertility care in...

Technology

EU Prepares Antitrust Probe Into Meta’s AI Integration on WhatsApp

The European Commission is reportedly preparing to launch a new antitrust investigation into Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) over the companys recent rollout of artificial intelligence features within WhatsApp....

Sam Altman Reportedly Explored Funding for Rocket Venture in Potential Challenge to SpaceX

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly explored raising significant capital to acquire or partner with a rocket company, a move that could have created direct competition with Elon Musks SpaceX. According to a report from the...

Wikipedia Pushes for AI Licensing Deals as Jimmy Wales Calls for Fair Compensation

Wikipedia is seeking additional licensing deals with major technology companies to address the growing financial burden caused by artificial intelligence firms heavily scraping its platform, according to co-founder Jimmy...

Firelight Launches as First XRP Staking Platform on Flare, Introduces DeFi Cover Feature

Firelight reaches 25M XRP deposit cap within hours of launch; ushers in a new era for decentralized XRP staking. A new XRP staking platform, Firelight, has officially launched on the Flare blockchain, marking the first...

OpenAI Moves to Acquire Neptune as It Expands AI Training Capabilities

OpenAI has confirmed plans to acquire Neptune, a startup known for its advanced tools that help companies track, monitor, and optimize AI model training workflows. Although the company did not release the financial details...