An intellectual property approach to the concept of traditional knowledge

TK, by gaining importance, has become the new buzzword for IP law. In an attempt to define TK with the view of eventual protection in mind, the WIPO IGC on IPGRTKF of the WIPO uses the term to refer to “tradition-based literary, artistic or scientific works; performances; inventions; scientific discoveries; designs; marks, names and symbols; undisclosed information; and, all other tradition-based innovations and creations resulting from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary or artistic fields.”

The notion “tradition-based” refers to knowledge systems, creations, innovations, and cultural expressions “which have generally been transmitted from generation to generation; are generally regarded as pertaining to a particular people or its territory; have generally been developed in a non-systematic way; and, are constantly evolving in response to a changing environment.” TK in everyday life is governed by a series of holistic and dynamic local and indigenous customary laws and where there is no distinction between the sacred and secular. This holistic outlook on life accounts for the way these communities operate with a sacred notion of the inherent “one-ness” between man and the natural order, where all living things are interrelated and interdependent. There follows from this view a pervasive respect for the environment and an acute sensitivity to its agricultural and medicinal qualities. Such communities have evolved complex relationships with their surroundings, often expressed through totemic relationships with various species and religious ceremonies involving the celebration of the human–nature interaction.