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economies. For more information see:
www.bioculturalheritage.org
Biopiracy
Used to describe a situation where
communities have received few benefits, if
any, when their traditional knowledge and
genetic resources have been used to develop
new products which are then patented by
commercial companies or governments.
Customary laws are locally recognised
principles, norms and rules, which are
orally held and transmitted and are applied
by community institutions (e.g. councils of
elders) to govern internally or guide all
aspects of life. They include rules and
norms to control access to natural resources
and ensure sustainable and equitable use,
and codes of ethics for proper use and
transmission of traditional knowledge
(Swiderska, 2006).
Customary rights are acquired by custom,
and belong to all the inhabitants of a
particular place. Indigenous peoples’
customary rights often emphasise collective
rather than individual rights , and
stewardship rather than outright
ownership. Rights are wedded to a
responsibility to sustain resources for
current and future generations.
Community protocols
Charters of rules and responsibilities in
which communities set out their customary
rights to natural resources and land, as
recognised in customary, national and
international laws.
Convention on Biodiversity (CBD)
The CBD is an international agreement,
ratified in 1993, which aims to conserve
biological diversity, promote sustainable
use of biodiversity and ensure the fair and
equitable sharing of the benefits arising out
of the utilisation of genetic resources. It
requires countries which use genetic
resources (industrialised countries) to
share the benefits they derive fairly and
equitably with countries that provide access
to genetic resources. This is referred to as
access and benefit-sharing (ABS). The CBD
requires the prior informed consent of
Parties to be obtained by any public or
private enterprise seeking access to genetic
resources (Article 15); and recognises the
importance of the knowledge, innovations
and practices of indigenous and local
communities (Article 8j). However, in
practise there are many contentious issues
in ABS, one of which is the lack of
implementation in industrialised countries.
The Nagoya Protocol on access and
benefit-sharing was developed to address
this. One hundred and ninety-three
countries are party to the CBD. The CBD is
also supported by the International Treaty
on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and
Agriculture (ITPGRFA).
Endogenous development
Development driven by communities,
building on their culture, knowledge,
resources and institutions.
Free, prior informed consent (FPIC)
processes
Processes in which communities decide
whether or not to allow projects affecting
their land or resources to go ahead, and on
what terms. The requirement for prior
informed consent (PIC) to be ‘free’ responds
to experiences where indigenous peoples
have been coerced into giving their consent,
rather than being allowed to give it freely or
deny consent.
Genetic resources
Genetic resources are the genetic material
of plants, animals or micro-organisms
which may be of value as a resource for
future generations of humanity (OECD,
2001). Genetic resources are used
commercially in a range of sectors:
biotechnology, plant breeding,
pharmaceuticals, herbal medicines,
cosmetics and industrial processes.