Cooperative Research Centre for Remote Economic Participation

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

Principal Research Leader – Assoc. Prof. L. Slade LEE

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

Acknowledging: Yuggera (Jagera) & Turrubal group and Quandamooka people

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

the case: • legal • moral & ethical • reconciliation • attribution

the mechanism: • laws • conventions • marketing

the aim: • raise questions about the associated issues of hereditary

custodianship and Traditional Knowledge

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

the issue: • Traditional Knowledge

◦ value (Indigenous cf. Western) ◦ utility & spiritual ◦ customary rights

• Hereditary custodianship ◦ acknowledgement ◦ consent ◦ protection ◦ benefit-sharing

• Principles ◦ commercialisation ◦ moral & ethical ◦ reconciliation ◦ attribution ◦ approaches

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

• traditional significance ◦ utility ◦ totemic ◦ cultural (stories, dance, art)

• commercialisation – utility only ◦ exploitation of a resource ◦ utilisation & processing ◦ connectedness with tradition – bush foods : equivalent (macadamia) : processed (bush tomato) – essential oils & extracts: refined (tea tree) – derivatives: purified & modified (Marjarla) – non-utilised: cultural nonetheless (ornamental natives)

the question of attribution:

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

it’s the law: • IP Law vs. Traditional Knowledge & Customary Law

◦ defined term cf. in perpetuity ◦ defined owner cf. collective ownership ◦ defined in writing cf. preserved in oral culture

• IP Law and customary heritage rights ◦ fundamentally incompatible ◦ do not acknowledge each other ◦ not a satisfactory mechanism for safeguarding

Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge or cultural heritage ◦ but are under review by IP Australia

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

it’s the other laws: • innovative legal approaches to safeguarding cultural heritage

• disadvantages ◦ legalese is confronting ◦ expensive ◦ complex

◦ the ‘many irons’ approach – Janke, Drahos ◦ sui generis – Drahos

◦ finessing the law – Martin & Jeffery

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

• market-based approaches to safeguarding cultural heritage ▫ governed by law:

◦ Trademarks ◦ Certification ◦ Registered Designs ◦ Geographical Indications

▫ cooperative and collective: ◦ FairTrade ◦ trade secrets

it’s the other ways:

Plant Business Project

Safeguarding Traditional Knowledge in commercialisation of native plants

• disadvantages ◦ trades on goodwill ◦ legal enforceability

it’s the other ways:

• advantages ◦ inexpensive ◦ straightforward

Plant Business Project

Project Partners

Partner Student Supervisors

Advisory Group Others

Thank you -

Discussion