Archive of Developments in Indigenous Cultural & Intellectual Property,
2007-
2008
bullet More on the Mukurtu Archive project from the ABC (Australia), 6 February 2008, posted here 11 February 2008.
bullet If you like audio podcasts, be sure to go to BBC's Digital Planet for the interview of Kim Christen, who talks about the Mukurtu Archive project with which she's involved. You can also link to the interview through Kim's blog. The interview is dated 29 January, posted here 1 February 2008.
bullet "Turning plants into pills in Kenya," by Tatum Anderson, SciDev.Net, 13 December 2007, posted here 31 January 2008.
bullet More on ongoing controversy about a patent on wild rice, from the Ojibwe perspective: the article "Ricekeepers," by Winona LaDuke, originally published in Orion magazine in the July/August 2007 issue, linked here 15 January 2008.
bullet An editorial in SciDev.Net argues that the world may have gone overboard in its campaign against biopiracy, creating legal tangles that slow legitimate research on biodiversity as well as ethically questionable bioprospecting. Dated 12 September 2007, posted here 15 January 2008.
bullet The P2P Consortium recently featured an interview with Rick Falkvinge, leader of the Swedish Pirate Party, an anti-IPR group. 12 January 2008, posted here 15 January.
bullet If you're interested in cultural hybridization and the difficulty of defining cultural boundaries, check out this story on the rise of Aboriginal hip-hop in Australia. 12 January 2008, posted here 15 January.
bullet For state-of-the-art work in Aboriginally controlled archives, check out the newly launched Mukurtu Wumpurrarni-kari Archive, still in beta but serviceable enough.  From the site's information page: "The Mukurtu Wumpurrarni-kari Archive is a 'safe keeping place.' The archive uses the cultural protocols of the Warumungu people to arrange, sort, and present content. Any piece of content that is not marked "open" (and thus viewable by the general public) is tagged with a set of restrictions." Kudos to Kim Christen and her collaborators for bringing the rest of us into the future. 7 January 2008.
bullet Dennis Ocholla, "Marginalized Knowledge: An Agenda for Indigenous Knowledge Development and Integration with Other Forms of Knowledge" (PDF file). International Review of Information Ethics, September 2007, posted here January 2008.  
bullet The New York Times ran a recent story on the bioprospector Chris Kilham. The Times piece includes a brief audio slide show that may not be accessible indefinitely. "Medicine hunter" or biopirate? You decide--although the Times article states that Kilham has helped to increase the household income of grateful maca farmers in remote areas of highland Peru. 1 January 2008; posted here 4 January. 
2007
bullet More on how magicians, as well as chefs and professional comics, defend their intellectual property without resorting to copyrights and patents. By Daniel B. Smith in the Boston Globe, 23 December 2007, posted here 31 December 2007.
bullet "Africa: Seed Sharing or Biopiracy?" AllAfrica.com, 20 December 2007.
bullet "Scientists build new model of bioexploration." From ScienceDaily, 13 December 2007.
bullet Don't miss this: An eye-opening 45-minute video talk by Jerónimo Muñoz about the commercialization of Latin American shamanism and its impact on indigenous practitioners and their communities, "Ayahuasca and the Gringos," given at the 3rd Amazonian Shamanism Conference, Iquitos, 2007. Posted here 10 December 2007.
bullet

Farmers in Nagaland (NE India) on path to securing IP protection for "Naga King Chili," supposedly among the world's hottest chili peppers. Chilis from Nagaland reportedly score higher than 1 million Scoville units, the widely use scale for measuring the potency of chilis. By comparison a typical Habanero checks in at a wimpy 300,000 Scovilles. For a 2006 Times (London) story on chilis from Nagaland and Bangladesh, click here. Eat with caution! 17 December 2007.


[From "Pepper Profile: Naga Jolokia" by Harald Zoschke]
bullet In the blog Ars Technica, Nate Anderson discusses a recent paper (PDF format) by the law professor John Tehranian, in which it is argued that the average American unknowingly violates copyright law scores of times a day. Original post dates to 19 November; posted here 7 December 2007.
bullet New title on cultural heritage: Helaine Silverman and D. Fairchild Ruggles, eds., Cultural Heritage and Human Rights, Springer, 2008.
bullet Inside Higher Education carries story entitled "Downloading Cultures," which reports on a panel at the 2007 annual meeting of the American Anthropological Association that considered the possibilities and ethical dilemmas of making cultural productions available on the Web and in other non-print media. 3 December 2007.
bullet "Copyright law offers poor protection for aboriginal cultural property," by David Spratley, in Lawyers Weekly, 23 November 2007. This essay considers, among other things, recent efforts to control the reproduction of totem pole images in British Columbia. With thanks to Ed Labenski, whose blog is definitely worth a look. 29 November 2007.
bullet An important set of symposium papers (not available as Open Access documents, unfortunately) appeared in the Fall 2007 issue of Law, Medicine, and Ethics under the heading "Genome Justice: Genetics and Group Rights." The special issue includes essays by Rebecca Tsosie, Joan L McGregor, and Kim TallBear, among others. Electronic copies of these essays may be available via your public or institutional library.
bullet A forthcoming article by Aaron Schwabach, "Intellectual property piracy: Perception and reality in China, the United States, and elsewhere," is available full-text.  Schwabach makes a case against some U.S. claims that piracy of DVDs and CDs necessarily causes great financial harm to copyright-holders. 21 November 2007.
bullet If you're interested in issues of IPR and the future of the public domain, pay a visit to the website of Duke's Center for the Study of the Public Domain.  16 November 2007.
bullet Kim Christen is guest-blogging at Savageminds.org, and her latest post is about Aboriginally controlled digital archives in Australia. Check it out! 9 November 2007.
bullet By Thekla Hansen-Young, "Whose Name is it Anyway? Protecting Tribal Names from Cybersquatters." Virginia Journal of Law and Technology, Summer 2005. Added here 8 November 2007.
An article by Jill Koren Kelley, available full-text: "Owning the Sun: Can Native Culture be Protected Through Current Intellectual Property Law?" Journal of High Technology Law, 2007. Added here 8 November 2007.
See Kimberly Christen's blog Long Road for discussion of recent debate about whether the creation of a virtual Uluru in Second Life violates the religious principles or IP rights of relevant Aboriginal peoples in Australia.  See a related story here.
A French museum may be repatriating a Maori tatooed head--if the national government permits. New York Times, 26 October 2007.
On the protection of Indigenous heritage: A reply to Audra Simpson. Michael F. Brown, October 2007.
A must-read paper available full-text: Madhavi Sunder's "The invention of traditional knowledge," from Law and Contemporary Problems, Spring 2007. Note, too, that this issue contains useful shorter contributions by William Fisher and Siva Vaidhyanathan. 23 October 2007.
UN body fails to reach agreement on biopiracy treaty. From Grain.org, 19 October 2007.
If you're interested in trade secrets and their possible application to indigenous knowledge, check out Tim Harford's "The conjurer's dilemma: How magicians protect their tricks," in Slate.com, 13 October 2007.
Not very relevant to indigenous IPR but totally cool anyway: Website of the Acoustic Ecology Institute, which offers"access to news, academic research, public policy advocates, and articles and essays about sound and listening." I guess you could argue that it provides, among other things, information on how indigenous peoples can defend their rights to a world less afflicted by noise pollution.
"NGOs having major impact on WIPO agenda, panel says." By Paul Garwood in IP Watch, 5 October 2007.

"Is the crackdown on biopiracy protecting the rights of indigenous people or putting the freeze on beneficial science?" Kelly Hearn, Alternet.org. From more than a year ago but posted here 3 October 2007 because it's still a question worth asking.

An international treaty to protect cultural heritage? From the Jakarta Post, 3 October 2007

Recent open-access papers on indigenous IPR by Preston Hardison:
Rastafarians seek IP protection for their style, colors, and traditions. Jamaica Gleaner, 16 September 2007.
Yale agrees to repatriate artifacts from Peru's Machu Picchu. New York Times, 17 September 2007.
A forthcoming title to keep your eye on: James O. Young, Cultural Appropriation and the Arts (December 2007, Blackwell).
Check out an interesting paper by Naveeda Khan, "Trespasses of the state: Ministering to theological dilemmas through the copyright/trademark." Published in the Sarai Reader 2005, an online journal with other articles that might be of interest to lit-crit/IPR mavens. Thanks to Sameena Mulla for the heads-up on this one.
Economists are now experts on everything. See, for example, Tim Hartford's "Rent-a-treasure: How to eliminate the black market in stolen antiquities," Slate.com, 14 September 2007.
The hottest thing in Aboriginal art from Australia? "Car bonnet art"! From ABC, Australia, 10 September 2007.
"Intellectual property rights and traditional knowledge: The case of yoga," 2007, by Krishna Ravi Srinivas, is downloadable as a full-text PDF.  It originally appeared in the Economic and Political Weekly, Vol 47, pp. 2866-2871. 6 September 2007.
Check out Eric Kansa's recent essay, "Finding common ground in the digital commons," iCommons.org, 14 August 2007, posted here 6 September 2007.
In the "fight against biopiracy," Brazil is now prosecuting a scientist whose research has little if anything to do with patentable information. The New York Times, 28 August 2007.
More on yoga patents. From NewstrackIndia.com, 21 August 2007.
"Far From the Reservation, but Still Sacred?" By Nelson D. Schwartz. New York Times, 12 August 2007.
bullet icon Information on a new NZ document about indigenous IPR aimed specifically at Maori communities (with thanks to Deidre Brown in Auckland). 8 August 2007.
Exploding prices for indigenous art raise the question of resale rights for artists. ABC News, Australia, 27 July 2007.
"High tech, biotech clashing on patent bill," by Stephen Heuser, Boston Globe, 19 July 2007 (with thanks to John Daly).
An exchange about IP, pharmaceuticals, and bioprospecting between Michael Brown and John Daly in Daly's blog Thoughts about K4D, 24 July 2007.
"A patent is worth having, right? Well, maybe not."  Article by Michael Fitzgerald in the New York Times, 15 July 2007.
"WIPO committee extends, adjusts mandate on traditional knowledge, folklore," by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen, IPWatch, 13 July 2007.
"Protect cultural heritage, women told." Story in The Gazette (Montreal) about indigenous IP and its protection.  12 July 2007.
"Ethiopia: Brilliant strategy against Starbucks means more for farmers," by Jonathan Edelstein.  AfricanPath.com, 3 July 2007.
"The Possessed," by Arthur Lubow, deals with controversy over disposition of Inca artifacts collected by Yale's Hiram Bingham at Machu Picchu in the early 20th century.  New York Times Magazine, 24 June 2007.
"June 21 set for 2007 National Prayer Day for Native Sacred Places."  Indian Country Today, 19 June 2007.
We live in strange times: Another off-topic story irresistible to anyone with a sense of irony and an interest in globalization: Salon.com reports on federal contract awarded to Alaskan Inupiat Eskimo firm, which will provide meals to coca-eradication forces in the Colombian jungle .  19 June 2007.
Slightly off-topic but irresistible: Ted Miller and the insanity of increasingly aggressive application of IP law to sports reporting.  From SeattleIP, 15 June 2007.
MFB review of the Handbook of Cultural Property Law 2006, Sherry Hutt and David Tarler, eds., 2007, published in the Museum Anthropology Review, 11 June 2007.
"Health over intellectual property rights, says G5."  From IPSNews.net, 8 June 2007.
"Maori words in brand names belong to . . ." Bay of Plenty Times, 4 June 2007.
Descendants of Chief Katonah protest effort by Martha Stewart to trademark Katonah name for furniture line.  New York Times, 3 June 2007.
Aveda discusses business partnerships with indigenous communities that would involve marketing of indigenous knowledge.  EmediaWire, 31 May 2007.
New article by Chris Hann, "A new double movement? Anthropological perspectives on property in the age of neoliberalism," Socio-Economic Review 5, 2007.  Link, I believe, is to pre-publication copy of the essay.
Another trademarking flap, this time in Australia--about the possible trademarking of the word "migaloo."  Gold Coast Bulletin, 2 June 2007.
An Aboriginal painting breaks the A$1 million mark at auction in Australia. Posted here 30 May.
Mira Kamdar reports on new American-backed efforts to expand the power of patents on genetically modified crops grown in India. From Tehelka, 26 May.

Just for fun, check out these patent records in Google's amazing new patent resource:
--A device for inducing altered states of consciousness (1996)
--the much-maligned ayahuasca plant patent (1986)
--my personal favorite, an Indian headdress with whirling feathers (1954)

Reporting for Stuff.co.nz and the Dominion Post, journalist Nick Church considers the growing use of Maori themes and images in New Zealand tourism and its impact on the Maori people. 23 May 2007.
Good writer, terrible idea: Mark Helprin argues that copyrights should last forever.  An op-ed piece in the New York Times, 20 May 2007.  Read James Boyle's reply in the Financial Times, 21 May.
From the Sunday Observer, Sri Lanka: "New bills soon to protect indigenous religious resources." 20 May 2007.
An amazing set of articles on IP, creativity, and social justice has just been published in the UC Davis Law Review (Vol 40, issue 3). The publication, which emerged from a recent symposium, is edited by Anupam Chander and Madhavi Sunder. All articles are available as full-text PDFs. For a discussion of some of the essays, see Kim Christen's blog. 11 April 2007.
"Libraries and indigenous knowledge."  Discussion from Savageminds.org, including link to new Australian open-access book on this issue. 7 April 2007.
Information on a dispute over the construction of a power plant near the Medicine Lake Highlands, Mount Shasta, California, considered a sacred site by American Indians.  5 April 2007.
Another story by Carolina Galvani on IPR in the Amazon. From Mongabay.com, 21 March 2007.
New book available as open-source PDF: Pacific Genes and Life Patents: Pacific Experiences and Analysis of the Commodification and Ownership of Life.  Published by Call of the Earth/Llamado de la Tierra & the United Nations University, 2007.
"Brazil offers Internet access to Indians."  The Guardian (UK), 30 March 2007.
Peru creates online diversity register to regulate biodiversity research.   SciDev.net, 22 March 2007.
"Does Joss Stone sound too black?" by David Marchese in Salon.com. A discussion of the perennial question of cultural appropriation, 28 March 2007.
Scottish crofters seek same legal status as indigenous peoples. BBC News, 25 March 2007.
Check out this terrific essay on heritage protection by Dorothy Noyes of Ohio State: "The Judgment of Solomon: Global Protections for Tradition and the Problem of Community Ownership," available full-text in Cultural Analysis 5 (2006).
"Hands off our genes say Pacific Islanders." From The National, Papua New Guinea, 21 March 2007.
Stephen Leahy, "Pacific Islanders preyed upon by Bio-pirates." Inter-Press News, 20 March 2007.
It's not yet April 1, so this seems to be a serious article: "Extraterrestrial contact with Earth's indigenous peoples reveal Western societally repressed knowledge," The Canadian, 16 March 2007.
"World Won't Respect Brazilian Indians Patent Rights Starting with Brazil," Carolina Galvani, Brazzil Magazine, 17 March 2007.
"Now is the time for international action on patents."  SciDev.Net, 12 March 2007.
"Brazil's poisonous tree frog vaccine hasn't made Indians immune to foreign greed," by Carolina Galvani.  Brazzil Magazine, 11 March 2007.
Rolf Potts is doing a series on the Australian outback, with comment on Aboriginal life & art, as well as sacred sites, for Slate.com. 8 March 2007.
"Aboriginal artists become victims of their success," by Alex Malik, Canberra Times, 5 March 2007.  Makes a case for protecting Aboriginal art from infringement and counterfeiting.
The East Africa Standard, Nairobi, carried a story about efforts to trademark some Swahili words in the UK, including kiondo. 1 March 2007, posted here 5 March.  See also a similar article about the kikoi controversy in the Independent, UK, 8 March.
Not exactly hot news, but Duke University Law School publishes eight open-source journals that carry articles on IPR, secrecy, and changing ideas of the public domain. (Regarding the latter, see, e.g., Law and Contemporary Society, Winter/Spring 2003.)  As far as I can tell, virtually everything is available in html or pdf formats.
Interesting SavageMinds discussion on the possible use of branding as a strategy for protecting indigenous IPR, 28 February 2007.
"Llegó la hora de registrar los conocimientos tradicionales de Bolivia para enfrentar a la biopiratería," Bolpress.com, 28 February 2007.
New essay available full-text: Jennie D. Woltz, The Economics of Cultural Misrepresentation: How Should the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 Be Marketed? Fordham Intellectual Property, Media, and Entertainment Law Journal, Winter 2007.
Review of Steal This Music: How Intellectual Property Law Affects Musical Creativity," by Joanna Demers.  Popmatters.com, 16 February 2007.
DNA analysis will determine whether Maori sweet potato (kumara) varieties pre-date European contact, which could have IPR implications.  NZ Herald, February 2007.
Madhavi Sunder has published yet another vitally important article on intellectual property, and it is available full-text: "IP3," Stanford Law Review 59, 2006.  See also her recent paper, "The invention of traditional knowledge."
The furor over commercialization of the Peruvian plant maca continues. Is the marketing of maca extracts in a product called MacaPure a legitimate innovation or an instance of biopiracy? Associated Press, 7 January 2007; posted here 5 February.
"Indigenous people, indigenous knowledge." Story about "tribals" of Orissa, India, and the cultural/economic value of their traditional knowledge.  Ok, it says that tribal people are "children of nature." I don't write this stuff, I only share it! From the Kalinga Times. 16 February 2007.
Sabrina Safrin of Rutgers Law-Newark has published an interesting paper," Chain Reaction: How Property Begets Property." You can access the abstract here; the abstract page links to options for full-text download.  2 February 2007.
Fascinating (and laudatory) article in Salon.com about Glenn Stone's recent work on the social and economic impact of genetically-modified cotton in Warangal, India.  1 February 2007.
Latest developments in Waitangi Tribunal deliberations about Maori ownership of NZ's indigenous flora and fauna--in this case with particular reference to herbal remedies. From Stuff.co.nz, 30 January.  Posted here 1 February 2007.
"Someone (other than you) may own your genes," by Denise Caruso, New York Times, 28 January 2007.  Discusses interesting paper by Stephen Hilgartner, which is available full-text.  29 January 2007.
The future of information: "Could this be the final chapter in the life of the book?" Brian Appleyard, The Times (London), 21 January, posted here 22 January 2007
"Updating Chinese traditional medicine policy proves problematic," IP-Watch.org, dated 19 January, posted here 22 January 2007.
"Protecting traditional knowledge," by Jacob Simet, in The National (Papua New Guinea), 10 January 2007, posted here 11 January 2007.
"Nigeria boosts research into traditional medicine." From SciDev.Net, 15 December 2006, posted here 4 January 2007.
This is off-topic a bit, but the anthropologist Adam Kuper has published an essay in The Lancet expressing great skepticism about a recent report on the health status of the world's indigenous peoples.  Part of Kuper's critique turns on the question of who qualifies as "indigenous." Link posted here 4 January 2007.