Biopiracy: Definition, Effects, Examples & Usage

What Is Biopiracy?

The unauthorised exploitation of biological resources or traditional knowledge, often from developing countries, by external entities for profit-based purposes, is known as biopiracy.

Biopiracy is intricately linked to the biology of the 21st century and conceptualizes the ethical and legal concerns related to biodiversity and traditional knowledge. Its development as a phenomenon during the time of globalisation reveals power imbalances and the concerns and requirements for just and equitable use of resources.

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This Story also Contains

1. What Is Biopiracy?
2. Understanding Biopiracy
3. Causes And Mechanisms Of Biopiracy
4. Impact Of Biopiracy
5. International Legal Frameworks
6. Strategies To Combat Biopiracy

The globalization of biopiracy started with rapid technological developments and increased awareness of the value of biodiversity and long-standing knowledge.

Understanding Biopiracy

Biopiracy is the theft of biodiversity or traditional knowledge without consent or fair and just return.

The key terms are biodiversity, which refers to the diversity of life, and traditional knowledge, held by indigenous communities; and intellectual property, which refers to ownership and allowed use.

Historical Examples

The historical cases of biopiracy are classic examples of stealing indigenous knowledge and biological resources for commercial purposes without fair and just return or recognition.

• Patenting of Azadirachta indica – Neem: A classic example of the case is that of the patents on neem and turmeric. These are important plants used in the traditional medical practices of India since time immemorial. But in the 1990s, patents were granted on the processes of these plants to multinational companies, without consideration of the superior prior art and knowledge.

• The rosy periwinkle: A second well-known case is that of rosy periwinkle, the Malagasy indigenous flowering plant. The plants were being used as extracts by the local men in curing several diseases like diabetes and cancer. In the 1950s, however, scientists found that extracts of the rosy periwinkle had strong anticancer effects and developed chemotherapy drugs vincristine and vinblastine.

To secure continued access to their resources, indigenous communities have not been able to demand fair and equitable remuneration from other users, including Madagascar the nation. This indicates that genetic resources' exploitation through biopiracy without ensuring an equal way of benefit-sharing seriously breaches the human rights of the bio-prospective country and its people.

Biopiracy has serious effects on many Indigenous communities in the form of loss of cultural heritage and economic opportunities. It also poses dangers for harm to biodiversity by distorting ecosystems, which might cause long-term environmental changes.

Causes And Mechanisms Of Biopiracy

The causes and mechanism of biopiracy are given below:

Exploitation Of Biodiversity

In this regard, biopiracy is linked to the exploitation of regions endowed with rich biodiversity, usually found in the developing world. These resources afford areas found in these developing countries the need for outside interest in the practices of bioprospecting due to their rich and unique biological resources, not forgetting traditional knowledge held by indigenous communities.

The latter, in turn, encourages the outsiders to exploit the resources and even traditional knowledge recklessly, without adequate consent or compensation, plunging into an ethical and legal quagmire.

Legal And Ethical Issues

Weak legal frameworks and protective measures continue to compound the challenge of biopiracy. Weak or non-existent regulations and laws mean that there would be a gross inability to prevent biological resources and traditional knowledge from being appropriated.

With gross inappropriateness, a host of other ethical problems would ensue where exploitation of biological resources would cross the boundaries into fair benefit-sharing, respect for culture, and protection for the environment.

It is in light of these legal and ethical difficulties that action becomes first and most necessary in light of salvaging the negative impacts of biopiracy as well as ensuring fair and sustainable use of biodiversity and indigenous knowledge.

Impact Of Biopiracy

The impact of biodiversity is given below:

On Indigenous Communities

• Biopiracy has critical impacts on local communities and their traditional knowledge and cultural heritage.

• Infringement of Indigenous knowledge without consent and due compensation erodes their respective cultural identities and socioeconomic independence.

• There are severe economic impacts since what is mostly presented through intellectual property rights is the economic equation behind various indigenous practices.

• So, this process of biopiracy deprives the source nations of these potential benefits, and these countries have socio-economic disparities.

On Biodiversity

• Also, biopiracy has serious negative impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems. Misappropriation of all these genetic and biological resources is threatening the ecological balance and dangerously important yet vulnerable biological species.

• Further, the impacts of biopiracy influence indirect habitats, biodiversity, and ecosystem alteration to some extent.

• Addressing the impact of biopiracy on Indigenous communities and biodiversity is a key goal in the public sphere of environmental and social justice.

International Legal Frameworks

The legal frameworks related to biopiracy are:

Convention On Biological Diversity (CBD)

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) sets out objectives and principles for the conservation of biodiversity and for the sustainable use and equitable benefit-sharing of the components of biodiversity. It uses an Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) mechanism to ensure the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of its genetic resources.

Nagoya Protocol

At the core of its objectives, the Nagoya Protocol, as a supplementary agreement to the CBD, sets out critical provisions around access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing, having significantly contributed to curtailing biopiracy through provisions on transparency and cooperation.

Other Relevant Agreements

Relevant agreements of this kind would entail those in the sphere of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the TRIPS. On one hand, WIPO's deals are predominantly in the area of intellectual property rights, which also encompass patents and trademarks; on the other hand, agreements in the area of TRIPS lay down an international minimum standard of protection of the rights in question.

Indeed, they play a critical role in governing the exploitation of biological resources and traditional knowledge, putting in place legal frameworks that would deal with biopiracy in a bid to encourage ethical practices in bioprospecting.

Strategies To Combat Biopiracy

Some strategies to combat biopiracy are:

Strengthening Legal Protections

It is, therefore, very essential to enhance legal protection at national and international levels through legislation. This not only refers to reform in IPR laws but incorporates the general patent and other IPR reforms so that illegal exploitation of biological resources and traditional knowledge remains prohibited.

Community Empowerment

Community empowerment, in particular through the need for more community involvement, forms a vital component of a strategy against emerging threats. This includes empowering indigenous communities in the protection of their knowledge. The capacity and awareness programmes that follow can further empower communities to fight for the protection of their heritage and rights.

Scientific And Ethical Approaches

The use of science and morality in biopiracy decisions is critical because it has a two-way effect. Clear ethical guidelines related to bioprospecting can lead to a situation where research work or commercial activities are conducted with purity and respect for indigenous rights.

Collaboration of scientists with the people leads to bi-directional understanding and participation, further resulting in equitable benefit-sharing, thereby leading to sustainability and responsible bioprospection. By following these strategic points, champions dealing with polarized issues can deal with promoting the cause of biodiversity conservation with social justice.