Bioprospecting, Biopiracy and Biotrade

Photo: Jaci van Niekerk

A major, ongoing project relates to biodiversity use and traditional knowledge in the southern African landscape, placing this within the contemporary world of bioprospecting, biopiracy and fair trade. A focus is placed on southern African species traded as natural products, the communities that use them, and the paths travelled as indigenous knowledge, identities and resources get transformed into drugs, cosmetics, foods and flowers for the global consumer market. The main aim is to contribute towards a holistic, integrated and conceptually robust understanding of the factors that enhance or constrain benefits for marginalised communities dependent upon natural resources.

A particular focus is placed on investigating policy frameworks for non-timber forest products, access and benefit sharing, and bioprospecting, and the role played by intellectual property rights and traditional knowledge in the development of products. The project also has a strong visual, creative and archival element, involving photographer Paul Weinberg of UCT’s Dept of Fine Arts. Planned outputs for the project include a book, journal articles, policy briefs, an archive and an exhibition. The National Research Foundation provides support for this project, along with funding from the Academic and Non-Fiction Authors' Association of South Africa (ANFASA).