Public sector institutes all over the world conduct research in modern biotechnology to strengthen the sustainable production of food, feed and fibre, to address water shortage, to improve health care and environmental protection. The extent to which modern biotechnology will be able to contribute to these goals depends on, among other things, international agreements, such as the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB). During the development of these international agreements, the public research sector - which counts tens of thousands researchers in developing and developed countries - has until 2004 not been represented in an organised way. The Public Research and Regulation Initiative (PRRI) was established in 2004 with the objective to offer public researchers a forum through which they are informed about and involved in international discussions, such as the Meetings of the Parties to the CPB (MOPs). PRRI participated in MOP2 and MOP3, as well as in the 8th Conference of the Parties (COP8) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), with many public research scientists from all over the world. Since its establishment, PRRI has become a well-recognised organisation in the international arena. PRRI’s main activities for 2008 are to facilitate the participation of public researchers in MOP4 and COP9, which will be held back to back from 12 – 30 May in Bonn, Germany. For this purpose, PRRI has organised regional meetings in Africa, Europe, North America and South America to introduce public researchers to the Cartagena Protocol and the Biodiversity Convention, and to seek their input on the topics on the agenda of MOP4 and COP9. This session will briefly introduce PRRI and its activities and accomplishments, and will discuss in depth the topics on the agenda of MOP4 and COP9.