DRAFT WIPO Toolkit on TK for Comment

While a wide range of tools have been developed to protect Traditional Knowledge (TK) and Traditional Cultural Expressions (TCEs), the focus has primarily been on documentation. With emerging concerns that documentation has potential effects on the rights, cultures and livelihoods of indigenous peoples and local communities, partly through placing TK and TCEs in the ‘public domain’, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) has produced a draft Traditional Knowledge Documentation Toolkit to address some of these concerns. WIPO is seeking input on the draft towards a final publication. 

The Toolkit seeks to offer practical guidance on how to undertake a TK documentation exercise as a process and how to address critical intellectual property-related issues and questions as they surface during this effort. The Toolkit primarily focuses on TK but much may also apply to TCEs. The Toolkit does not promote documentation or suggest any one approach to intellectual property management, but rather offers a menu of alternatives to be taken into account in documentation projects and efforts. 

A summary of the consultation draft of the Toolkit can found here, and the Toolkit can be downloaded in English here (drafts in Spanish and French are being prepared). Comments and suggestions should be sent to grtkf@wipo.int.

WIPO Indigenous Fellowship - Applications Open

The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) is seeking expressions of interest from indigenous individuals for the WIPO Indigenous Fellowship for 2013. The Fellowship seeks to build on a series of initiatives to ensure that Indigenous peoples are actively and effectively involved in the work of WIPO on issues that matter to them.

Fellows will work under the Director of the Traditional Knowledge Division of WIPO to assist in outreach to Indigenous peoples and local communities on intellectual property issues, contribute to and participate in the Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore, assist in planning and undertaking WIPO activities relevant to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, carry out relevant research and draft and prepare WIPO documents, and perform tasks that may be required in the context of the work of the Division. 

Applicants are expected to be recognised and active members of an Indigenous community, to have proven experience in Indigenous outreach, to hold legal qualifications or equivalent practical experience  with a preference for experience in intellectual property law, and to demonstrate the ability to work effectively in English (at least one other UN language would be an advantage). 

Find more details on the fellowship and how to apply here. 

Continuing Negotiations on Traditional Cultural Expressions Legal Instrument

The World Intellectual Property Organisation’s (WIPO) Intergovernmental Commission’s (IGC) negotiations on the draft text of an international legal instrument on the protection of traditional cultural expressions (TCEs) continued from 13-17 July, 2012. The WIPO Secretariat announced that good progress was made on the definition of protectable TCEs, the identification of beneficiaries, and exceptions and limitations to the scope of protection. An informal expert group has been established to reduce the number of options in the text. The text will be shared with the WIPO General Assembly as a work in progress when it meets in October 2012. The General Assembly will consider the need for additional IGC meetings and decide whether to convene a Diplomatic Conference. 

There is still no consensus on whether the negotiations will result in three separate instruments on genetic resources, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions, or if there will be one combined instrument. There is also disagreement around the nature of the instrument(s), namely whether they will be legally binding or not. 

While representatives of indigenous peoples were allocated a greater role in the discussions, they were not able to achieve the changes in the WIPO rules that they sought. The Indigenous Peoples’ Caucus released a closing statement expressing their disappointment that the IGC ‘has not substantive and concrete steps to ensure the full, equal, and direct participation of Indigenous Peoples in WIPO Processes that affect us.’ 

A summary of the proceedings can be found here. The meeting documents can be found here. The Indigenous Peoples' Caucus's closing statement can be found here.