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Farmers' Crop Varieties and Farmers' Rights: Challenges in Taxonomy and Law

Farmers' Crop Varieties and Farmers' Rights: Challenges in Taxonomy and Law

Author: Michael Halewood
Publisher: Earthscan
ISBN: 9781844078912
Published In: March 2016
Format: Paperback
Jurisdiction: U.K. ? Disclaimer:
Countri(es) stated herein are used as reference only

RM329.94

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Description
Contents

Details

This book is about crop plant varieties developed by local farmers - commonly referred to as farmers' varieties - and policies to increase the share of benefits farmers receive from the use of those varieties. This subject is problematic because there are no fixed taxonomic or legal definitions of farmers' varieties. The book aims to clarify the issues by examining: biological and social complexities involved in answering the questions, 'What is a farmers' variety?' and 'How can you tell them apart?'; the evolution of the concept of 'Farmers rights', starting from the dawn of 'genetic resources' as a subject worthy of international attention, to the first legal recognition of the concept of Farmers Rights in an international treaty in 2001, through to current efforts to develop national level policies and laws; and outstanding policy-making challenges linked to the absence of fixed taxonomic or legal definitions of farmers' varieties. It also examines: 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 considered; the manner in which public debate concerning the policy options considered in the book has evolved over the course of the last 20 years, and how that evolution compares with actual experiences implementing those policies; and case studies of actual situations 'in the field' where farmers, researchers and policy advocates have been confronted with the issues raised in this book.

1. Introduction

Part I

2. Biology of Crop Species and How that Affects Considerations of Identifying Farmers' Varieties

3. How Farmers, Their Varieties, and National Policies Interact in Real Life: Observations from Nepal, Vietnam and Syria

4. Historical Policy Context: Evolving International Cooperation on Crop Genetic Resources

5. Farmers' Rights

Part II

6. Variety Registration (as Precondition for Commercialization) Comments on Chapter 6

7. Sui Generis IPR Protections for Farmers' Varieties Comments on Chapter 7.

8: Defensive Publication Comments on Chapter 8.

Part III

9. Cross Cutting Analysis Concerning Institutional Capacities