Download or read book Farmers Crop Varieties and Farmers Rights written by Michael Halewood and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-03-10 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Crop plant varieties developed by local farmers, commonly referred to as ‘farmers' varieties’, are problematic because there are no fixed taxonomic or legal definitions of them. As a result, policies to increase the share of benefits farmers receive from the use of such varieties struggle to have an effect. Aiming to clarifying these issues, this volume explores the nature of farmers’ varieties in the context of their biological, social and legal significance. The book addresses the complexities of defining what farmers’ varieties are and how they differ from one another and from generic varieties. It then charts the evolution of the concept of ‘farmers’ rights’, from the dawn of ‘genetic resources’ as a subject worthy of international attention, to the first legal recognition of the concept, through to current efforts to develop national level policies and laws. Further, the book examines outstanding policy-making challenges linked to the absence of fixed taxonomic or legal definitions of farmers’ varieties. Case studies are included from Africa, Asia, Europe and South America in which farmers, researchers and policy advocates have been confronted with the issues raised in this book. Various solutions are considered based on revised or new definitions of farmers’ varieties that reflect the biological and cultural realities in which they are produced, and the relative costs and benefits of attempting to implement each of the policies discussed.

Download or read book Agrobiodiversity and the Law written by Juliana Santilli and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-03-15 with total page 347 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A wide range of crop genetic resources is vital for future food security. Loss of agricultural biodiversity increases the risk of relying on a limited number of staple food crops. However, many laws, such as seed laws, plant varieties protection and access and benefit-sharing laws, have direct impacts on agrobiodiversity, and their effects have been severely underestimated by policy-makers. This is of concern not only to lawyers, but also to agronomists, biologists, and social scientists, all of whom need clear guidance as to the relevance of the law to their work. This book analyzes the impact of the legal system on agrobiodiversity (or agricultural biodiversity) – the diversity of agricultural species, varieties, and ecosystems. Using an interdisciplinary approach, it takes up the emerging concept of agrobiodiversity and its relationship with food security, nutrition, health, environmental sustainability, and climate change. It assesses the impacts on agrobiodiversity of key legal instruments, including seeds laws, the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, plant breeders’ rights, the Convention on Biological Diversity (regarding specifically its impact on agrobiodiversity), and the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. It also reviews the options for the implementation of these instruments at the national level in several countries. It discusses the interfaces between the free software movement, the ‘commons’ movement, and seeds, as well as the legal instruments to protect cultural heritage and their application to safeguard agrobiodiversity-rich systems. Finally, it analyzes the role of protected areas and the possibility of using geographical indications to enhance the value of agrobiodiversity products and processes.

Download or read book Creating Sustainable Bioeconomies written by Ivar Virgin and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-08-25 with total page 307 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The growing global demand for food, feed and bio-based renewable material is changing the conditions for agricultural production worldwide. At the same time, revolutionary achievements in the field of biosciences are contributing to a transition whereby bio-based alternatives for energy and materials are becoming more competitive. Creating Sustainable Bioeconomies explores the prospects for biosciences and how its innovation has the potential to help countries in the North (Europe) and the South (Africa) to move towards resource efficient agriculture and sustainable bioeconomies. Throughout the book, the situations of Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa will be compared and contrasted, and opportunities for mutual learning and collaboration are explored. The chapters have been written by high profile authors and deal with a wide range of issues affecting the development of bioeconomies on both continents. This book compares and contrasts the situations of these two regions as they endeavour to develop knowledge based bioeconomies. This volume is suitable for those who are interested in ecological economics, development economics and environmental economics. It also provides action plans assisting policy-makers in both areas to support the transition to knowledge based and sustainable bioeconomies.

Download or read book Fair and Equitable Benefit Sharing in Agriculture Open Access written by Elsa Tsioumani and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-07-16 with total page 309 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the emergence and development of the legal concept of fair and equitable benefit-sharing, and its application in agriculture. Developed in the 1990s, the concept of fair and equitable benefit-sharing has been deployed in an ever-wider variety of international instruments, including those on biodiversity, climate change and human rights. A lack of clarity persists, however, on what fair and equitable benefit-sharing requires and entails, and whether its implementation supports or eventually undermines equity and justice. This book examines these questions in the area of land, food and agriculture, addressing for the first time several instances of the agricultural production chain, including research and development, land governance and land use and access to markets. It identifies challenges regarding implementation of the concept as enshrined in environmental treaties and soft-law instruments, with a focus on the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, the Voluntary Guidelines on Tenure and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants. It investigates its role, enabling conditions and limitations, in a contradictory policy context involving environmental, food security and human rights objectives but also a growing web of multilateral and bilateral trade and investment agreements. Linking international law research with a socio-legal analysis, the book addresses four grassroots examples, which offer ideas for institutional and legal innovation from the local to the global level. This interdisciplinary title will be of great interest to students and scholars of international environmental law, agriculture, land law, development studies and global governance, as well as policymakers and practitioners working in these fields. “The Open Access version of this book, available at https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429198304, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license."

Download or read book Cultivating Biodiversity to Transform Agriculture written by Étienne Hainzelin and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-12-04 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How can cultivated plant biodiversity contribute to the transformation and the "ecologization" of agriculture in Southern countries? Based on extensive field work in the Southern countries, a great deal of scientific progress is presented in all areas affecting agriculture (agronomy, plant breeding and crop protection, cultivation systems, etc.) in order to intensify the ecological processes in cultivated plots and at the scale of rural landscapes.

Download or read book Gene Patents and Collaborative Licensing Models written by Geertrui van Overwalle and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2009-06-11 with total page 517 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The cost of patent licenses needed to design a new genetic test or treatment may ultimately prevent research projects getting started, as individual components are protected by different patent owners. This book examines legal measures which might be used to solve the problem of fragmentation of patents in genetics.

Download or read book Intellectual Property Rights and Food Security written by Michael Blakeney and published by CABI. This book was released on 2009 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the contribution which intellectual property rights can make in the struggle for food security in developing countries. The book consists of 11 chapters. Chapter 1 locates intellectual property rights within the armoury of food security policies. Chapter 2 deals with definitional issues and examines the role of intellectual property rights in incentivizing agricultural research and development. Chapter 3 examines the international landscape of intellectual property and the approaches taken to the relationship between intellectual property rights, agricultural biotechnology, access to biological resources, food security and globalization which are taken by the WTO, FAO, CBD and WIPO among the various international and development agencies. Plant variety rights (PVRs) are a specially created form of intellectual property right originally minted to encourage agricultural innovation and Chapter 4 examines the effectiveness of PVRs in a food security context. Agricultural innovation is in part dependent upon access of researchers to the genetic resources of the biodiverse countries of the South. Chapter 5 considers the attempts to construct an international regime to secure this access. The important role of traditional farmers in preserving landraces and cultivars from which improvements can be derived has generated for a call for the recognition of farmers' rights, and this is examined in Chapter 6 together with agitation for the protection of the traditional knowledge which often informs access to the useful genetic resources. Chapter 7 examines the intellectual property implications of the use of genetically modified (GM) crops as a technological solution to food insecurity. The protection of GM crops is achieved through patent protection and Chapter 9 looks at the competition law implications of patent licensing, patent pools and patent thickets. An old intellectual property device that underpinned the commercial development of European agricultural marketing is the geographical indication, and Chapter 8 examines the contribution it might make to achieving food security. Returning to the theme of the role of intellectual property law in incentivizing innovation, Chapter 10 examines its role in promoting agricultural research. The concluding chapter proposes a number of recommendations for action in deploying intellectual property law in the struggle for food security.

Download or read book An ICT agripreneurship guide written by CTA and published by CTA. This book was released on 2017-08-01 with total page 72 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Handbook provides a step-by-step roadmap designed to equip aspiring ICT entrepreneurs, with the information and knowledge they need to start an ICT-based business in the agricultural sector, outlining key opportunities and challenges that will be encountered along the way. Using real-life examples, it provides strategies and pathways for averting common mistakes faced by early-stage entrepreneurs. Topics covered include agricultural value chains and their stakeholders, ICT business challenges, effective business plans and models for designing, funding and scaling ventures.

Download or read book Critical Perspectives on Food Sovereignty written by Marc Edelman and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-10-02 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume is a pioneering contribution to the study of food politics and critical agrarian studies, where food sovereignty has emerged as a pivotal concept over the past few decades, with a wide variety of social movements, on-the-ground experiments, and policy innovations flying under its broad banner. Despite its large and growing popularity, the history, theoretical foundations, and political program of food sovereignty have only occasionally received in-depth analysis and critical scrutiny. This collection brings together both longstanding scholars in critical agrarian studies, such as Philip McMichael, Bina Agarwal, Henry Bernstein, Jan Douwe van der Ploeg, and Marc Edelman, as well as a dynamic roster of early- and mid-career researchers. The ultimate aim is to advance this important frontier of research and organizing, and put food sovereignty on stronger footing as a mobilizing frame, a policy objective, and a plan of action for the human future. This volume was published as part one of the special double issue celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Journal of Peasant Studies.

Download or read book The Open Source Alternative written by Heather J. Meeker and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2008-05-02 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is a user manual for understanding and deployment of open source software licensing in business. Written for lawyers and businesspeople alike, it explains and analyzes open source licensing issues, and gives practical suggestions on how to deal with open source licensing in a business context. Including useful forms, information, and both technical and licensing background, this book will help you avoid legal pitfalls and edcuate your organization about the risks of open source.

Download or read book Intellectual Property and Human Development written by Tzen Wong and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2010-10-21 with total page 449 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the social impact of intellectual property laws. It addresses issues and trends relating to health, food security, education, new technologies, preservation of bio-cultural heritage and contemporary challenges in promoting the arts. It explores how intellectual property frameworks could be better calibrated to meet socio-economic needs in countries at different stages of development, with local contexts and culture in mind. A resource for policy-makers, stakeholders, non-profits and students, this volume furthermore highlights alternative modes of innovation that are emerging to address such diverse challenges as neglected or resurgent diseases in developing countries and the harnessing of creative possibilities on the Internet. The collected essays emphasize not only fair access by individuals and communities to intellectual property – protected material, whether a cure, a crop variety, clean technology, a textbook or a tune – but also the enhancement of their own capabilities in cultural participation and innovation.

Download or read book Policy Issues in Genetically Modified Crops written by Pardeep Singh and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2020-11-20 with total page 580 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Policy Issues in Genetically Modified Crops: A Global Perspective contains both theoretical and empirical evidence of a broad range of aspects of GM crop policies throughout the world. Emphasizing world agriculture production and ethics of GM crops, the book balances insights into the various discussions around the use of GM crops including soil health, effects on animals, environmental sustainability impact, and ethical issues. The book presents aspects of GM crop policies and prevailing controversies throughout the world, in 5 sections containing 23 chapters. Beginning with the discussion of the policies related to GM crops, the book dives deep into issues related to food insecurity, agricultural sustainability, food safety, and environmental risks. Section 5 also captures the recent advances in agricultural biotechnology encompassing research trends, the nano-biotech approach to plant genetic engineering, and other transformation techniques in crop development. The contributors of the book represent different backgrounds, providing a holistic overview of diverse approaches and perspectives. Policy Issues in Genetically Modified Crops: A Global Perspective is a valuable resource for researchers in agricultural policy and economics, agricultural biotechnology, soil science, genetic engineering, ethics, environmental management, sustainable development, and NGOs. - Discusses ethics, varieties, research trends, success, and challenges of genetic modification - Addresses both crop production and potential health impacts - Includes extensive theoretical research and studies

Download or read book Plant Breeding Reviews Volume 43 written by Irwin Goldman and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2019-10-07 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contents 1. Maria Isabel Andrade: Sweetpotato Breeder, Technology Transfer Specialist, and Advocate 1 2. Development of Cold Climate Grapes in the Upper Midwestern U.S.: The Pioneering Work of Elmer Swenson 31 3. Candidate Genes to Extend Fleshy Fruit Shelf Life 61 4. Breeding Naked Barley for Food, Feed, and Malt 95 5. The Foundations, Continuing Evolution, and Outcomes from the Application of Intellectual Property Protection in Plant Breeding and Agriculture 121 6. The Use of Endosperm Genes for Sweet Corn Improvement: A review of developments in endosperm genes in sweet corn since the seminal publication in Plant Breeding Reviews, Volume 1, by Charles Boyer and Jack Shannon (1984) 215 7. Gender and Farmer Preferences for Varietal Traits: Evidence and Issues for Crop Improvement 243 8. Domestication, Genetics, and Genomics of the American Cranberry 279 9. Images and Descriptions of Cucurbita maxima in Western Europe in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries 317

Download or read book Community Seed Banks written by Ronnie Vernooy and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-05-15 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Community seed banks first appeared towards the end of the 1980s, established with the support of international and national non-governmental organizations. This book is the first to provide a global review of their development and includes a wide range of case studies. Countries that pioneered various types of community seed banks include Bangladesh, Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Nepal, Nicaragua, the Philippines and Zimbabwe. In the North, a particular type of community seed bank emerged known as a seed-savers network. Such networks were first established in Australia, Canada, the UK and the USA before spreading to other countries. Over time, the number and diversity of seed banks has grown. In Nepal, for example, there are now more than 100 self-described community seed banks whose functions range from pure conservation to commercial seed production. In Brazil, community seed banks operate in various regions of the country. Surprisingly, despite 25 years of history and the rapid growth in number, organizational diversity and geographical coverage of community seed banks, recognition of their roles and contributions has remained scanty. The book reviews their history, evolution, experiences, successes and failures (and reasons why), challenges and prospects. It fills a significant gap in the literature on agricultural biodiversity and conservation, and their contribution to food sovereignty and security.

Download or read book First the Seed written by Jack Ralph Kloppenburg and published by CUP Archive. This book was released on 1990-06-29 with total page 374 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This history of the scientific and commercial lines of plant development in the United States traces the transformation of the seed from a public good produced and reproduced by farmers into a commodity controlled by businesses and corporations divorced from the uses of their product.

Download or read book Open Source Agriculture written by Chris Giotitsas and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-11-14 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Palgrave Pivot employs the concept of open source agriculture as a new social movement, which not only advocates a specific agenda but also creates technological products under a unique technology development model. The book brings together social movement and technology theory to examine it through two in-depth case studies of open source agricultural communities. This allows for the tracing of values and interests coded within the technological artefacts the communities produce, as well as their development processes. Critical theory of technology is further applied to examine the broader political economy of the development model.

Download or read book Local Knowledge Intellectual Property and Agricultural Innovation written by Michael Blakeney and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-06-22 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the role of local knowledge in promoting agricultural innovation and legislative support for agricultural innovation through intellectual property laws and the protection of farmers’ rights. In assessing the role of intellectual property in promoting agricultural innovation the book examines plant variety rights protection, the patenting of plant varieties and plant breeding methods; gene patents and climate change; open source biotechnology and agricultural innovation and geographical indications and the marketing of agricultural products. As a test bed for the application of the themes of the book, it applies a case study approach to look at the role of local knowledge and intellectual property rights in the cultivation of traditional rice varieties in Kerala, South West India and the extent to which this cultivation is supported by Indian legislation. The book concludes with an examination of the success of self-help groups, such as Farmers’ Clubs. This book appeals to all readers interested in policies to promote sustainable agriculture at a time of increasing food insecurity. A special feature of the book is the case study approach. To date, the role of local knowledge and agricultural innovation has been almost entirely ignored and the role of intellectual property in this space has been largely ignored. The book is a result of a research collaboration between the University of Western Australia and Kerala Agricultural University, funded in part by the Australian Research Council.