Recognising Traditional Knowledge Rights in an Intellectual Property-Dominated World: A Case for Bio-Collecting Societies

Abstract

This paper aims to outline why the current Intellectual Property rights (IPR) system is inadequate to protect Traditional Knowledge (TK). Whilst similar discussions have jumped straight to the applicability of existing IPRs to TK, this paper aims to take a few steps back by first looking at whether the protection of TK is justified. Integral to this analysis is establishing the value that TK holders themselves place on TK, and what TK protection really means to them. Then, it will explore how TK can be protected through property rights. Finally, this paper aims to propose two possible models of TK protection that best adhere to the rights of indigenous groups while also allowing this knowledge to be available to the public. Both models are centered around bio-collecting societies, one on a domestic level, and the other on a global scale. It will be argued that the best way to implement these would be to do so by complementing existing international instruments, with significant reference to the principles and objectives identified by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) as a result of its factfinding missions in the late 1990s.