WIPO To Hold Teach-In On Value Of IP System To Indigenous Peoples 28/08/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window)The World Intellectual Property Organization has scheduled a workshop in December to provide information to indigenous peoples on the value of intellectual property in protecting their knowledge and resources, and the existing gaps in this area. The “Practical workshop for Indigenous Peoples and local communities on IP and traditional knowledge” will be held on 4-6 December. Two representatives from each geographical region can attend and applications must be submitted by 15 September. According to WIPO, the objectives of the workshop are to: impart basic knowledge of the main principles of the intellectual property (IP) system from a traditional knowledge (TK) perspective, emphasizing both the potential value that IP could bring in support of TK protection and the gaps within the IP system that might need to be filled; explain the rationale, objectives and methodology of the negotiations that are taking place in the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore; raise awareness of the available IP tools and WIPO materials that are relevant to the protection of TK. It is unclear whether stakeholders agree that the existing IP system is ideal for protecting indigenous knowledge or if a new form of IP right might be more suitable. WIPO members have been in a contentious negotiation over possible international legal instruments for the protection of genetic resources, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions. The issue was negotiated in committee during the past year but had to be left for the late September annual WIPO General Assembly (IPW, WIPO, 25 July 2013). Meanwhile, indigenous groups have voiced a different view on how they would like to protect what they see as their heritage (IPW, Traditional and Indigenous Knowledge, 20 August 2013). Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window) Related William New may be reached at wnew@ip-watch.ch."WIPO To Hold Teach-In On Value Of IP System To Indigenous Peoples" by Intellectual Property Watch is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
[…] Indigenous peoples and local communities members who wish to participate in the workshop need to submit an application form to the WIPO Traditional Knowledge Division by 15 September 2013. The selected participants will be provided with economy class air travel to and from Geneva, Switzerland and a daily stipend for the duration of the workshop. Read the WIPO announcement on the workshop … Download the application form [doc] … Read an IP Watch comment on the workshop … […] Reply