| dc.contributor.author |
Ramprasad, Vanaja |
|
| dc.date.accessioned |
2011-04-11T18:33:47Z |
|
| dc.date.available |
2011-04-11T18:33:47Z |
|
| dc.date.issued |
2011 |
en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri |
https://hdl.handle.net/10535/7218 |
|
| dc.description.abstract |
"Traditionally farmers have maintained high levels of crop genetic diversity as insurance for their subsistence farming. The heterogeneity in the crop genetic makeup allowed for yield security and also provided the necessary buffer against environmental variation (nutrition, health, climate, soil conditions and pests). Over the years with the development of modern breeding and the creation of new improved crop varieties farmers have switched to commercial agriculture, replacing their diverse land races. As a result areas previously rich in agricultural bio diversity have been replaced with genetically homogenous fields. Along with this came the heightened awareness that while incentives existed for farmers to develop new varieties, there were no perceptible rewards for genetic resource conservation. The disparity between rewards to genetic resource that form the basis of development of new crop varieties and rewards accruing to new varieties that are products of research has been pointed out. The issue of farmer’s right was first raised as a global concern in 1986, after which the FAO adopted the International Undertaking on Plant genetic resources(IU) .Several years later FAO officially recognized the concept of farmer’s rights but the resolution as not legally binding. In 2001 after years of debate a legally binding international agreement on farmer’s rights was reached with the adoption of the FAO International treaty on PGRFA. The treaty’s objectives are the conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources and the equitable sharing of benefits arising from their use. A multilateral system for access and benefit sharing established under the treaty, governs the exchange of germ plasm from 35 food crops and 29 forage plants. A set of measures is called for to address the compatibility of seed laws and plant variety protection to take into account communities’ needs. Literature abounds on the topic to recommend reinforcing the traditional sharing system with a system of peer production and distribution of germ plasm as an alternative way to develop crop varieties and dynamically sustain genetic diversity. Measures are also needed to strengthen farmers, practices of seed saving and sharing and to further non commercial, non profit and co-operative exchange. Relaxing seed regulations and granting farmer immunity from patents and plant breeders infringement could support this. Considering the collective nature of plant genetic resource management, trusteeship by farmers is suggested in such a way that it accepts personal contribution to a common good and a form of ownership derived from that
contribution. In the countries of south Asia where agricultural modernization is being justified to ensure food security which is vying with traditional form of seed saving. It has to be emphasized that the controls brought in the seed system, controls the entire food system. The objective of this paper would be to explore and give shape to the alternatives that emphasize the fact that the farmers varieties need to be protected from IPRs and not by IPRs." |
en_US |
| dc.language |
English |
en_US |
| dc.subject |
plants |
en_US |
| dc.subject |
genetic resources |
en_US |
| dc.subject |
diversity |
en_US |
| dc.subject |
agricultural development |
en_US |
| dc.title |
Genetic Diversity in Seeds as Global Commons Alternatives to Protect the Genetic Diversity from IPRs than by IPRs |
en_US |
| dc.type |
Conference Paper |
en_US |
| dc.type.published |
unpublished |
en_US |
| dc.type.methodology |
Case Study |
en_US |
| dc.coverage.region |
Middle East & South Asia |
en_US |
| dc.subject.sector |
Agriculture |
en_US |
| dc.identifier.citationconference |
Sustaining Commons: Sustaining Our Future, the Thirteenth Biennial Conference of the International Association for the Study of the Commons |
en_US |
| dc.identifier.citationconfdates |
January 10-14 |
en_US |
| dc.identifier.citationconfloc |
Hyderabad, India |
en_US |