The road to Copenhagen: Intellectual property and climate change

In the lead-up to the discussions over IP and climate change in Copenhagen in 2009, the US House of Representatives passed a resolution that it should be the policy of US government officials in discussions over the long-term action under the United Nations Framework on Climate Change to ‘prevent any weakening of, and ensure robust compliance with and enforcement of, existing international legal requirements as of the date of the enactment of this Act for the protection of IP rights related to energy or environmental technology’.

The Australia-Chile free trade agreement 2008: Intellectual property and development. A submission to the Joint Standing Committee on treaties

A submission to the Joint Standing Committee on treaties

Remixing Canadian copyright law: A review essay on'An Emerging Intellectual Property Paradigm','Canadian Copyright: A Citizen's Guide'; and'RiP!: A Remix Manifesto', Prometheus, Vol. 27 (3), p. 297-305

In her album, Hymns of the 49th Parallel, the chanteuse K.D. Lang pays tribute to a series of great Canadian songwriters—such as Neil Young, Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell and Jane Siberry. In a similar spirit of celebration, this review essay pays homage to a number of recent texts and films dealing with Canadian intellectual property. First, it considers Ysolde Gendreau’s collection, An Emerging Intellectual Property Paradigm: Perspectives from Canada. Second, this essay looks at Laura Murray and Samuel Trosow’s manual, Canadian Copyright: A Citizen’s Guide. Finally, this review evaluates Brett Gaylor’s documentary, RiP! A Remix Manifesto. The three works share certain affinities—a spirit of scepticism about the legitimacy and the efficacy of existing networks of law, policy and bureaucracy; a populist interest in the impact of intellectual property on the everyday lives of citizens, creators and consumers; a passion for human rights; and a melioristic desire for sensible law reform of copyright law and related regimes of intellectual property.

The Sorcerer II expedition: Intellectual property and biodiscovery

This article considers the significance of a leading marine biodiscovery initiative. In March 2004, Dr. J. Craig Venter announced the official launch of the Sorcerer II Expedition, a scientific expedition of discovery, which would survey marine and terrestrial microbial populations. The Expedition has the potential to uncover tens of thousands of new microbial species and tens of millions of new genes. Venter has disavowed that the Sorcerer II Expedition has any commercial ambitions. However, some have viewed the Sorcerer II Expedition with suspicion. Various civil society groups have accused the Expedition of engaging in 'biopiracy'. This article investigates the Convention on Biological Diversity 1992 and other relevant international treaties, various national and regional regimes to govern access to genetic resources, and benefit-sharing agreements. It considers the intersection of intellectual property law, contract law, environmental law, and international law in this field. This article provides a blueprint for a nationally consistent scheme for access to genetic resources, and a model for future international developments.

Climate justice for intellectual property at Durban

DURBAN CLIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCE: In a global day of action for climate justice, thousands of protestors complained about the slow progress in international debates on climate change at the United Nations conference in Durban. One of the chants of the campaigners was “Climate justice … not climate apartheid”. Banners dubbed the Durban event a “circus” – a “conference of polluters”.

The Doha deadlock: Intellectual property and climate change

In November 2001, Doha hosted trade talks over intellectual property and public health. The discussions resulted in the landmark Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health. The Doha Declaration recognised “that the TRIPS Agreement does not and should not prevent members from taking measures to protect public health” - particularly in relation to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other epidemics.

The doctrine of necessity and the detention and restraint of people with intellectual impairment: Is there any justification?

In Australia, the legal basis for the detention and restraint of people with intellectual impairment is ad hoc and unclear. There is no comprehensive legal framework that authorises and regulates the detention of, for example, older people with dementia in locked wards or in residential aged care, people with disability in residential services or people with acquired brain injury in hospital and rehabilitation services. This paper focuses on whether the common law doctrine of necessity (or its statutory equivalents) should have a role in permitting the detention and restraint of people with disabilities. Traditionally, the defence of necessity has been recognised as an excuse, where the defendant, faced by a situation of imminent peril, is excused from the criminal or civil liability because of the extraordinary circumstances they find themselves in. In the United Kingdom, however, in In re F (Mental Patient: Sterilisation) and R v Bournewood Community and Mental Health NHS Trust, ex parte L, the House of Lords broadened the defence so that it operated as a justification for treatment, detention and restraint outside of the emergency context. This paper outlines the distinction between necessity as an excuse and as a defence, and identifies a number of concerns with the latter formulation: problems of democracy, integrity, obedience, objectivity and safeguards. Australian courts are urged to reject the United Kingdom approach and retain an excuse-based defence, as the risks of permitting the essentially utilitarian model of necessity as a justification are too great.

Parenting and the behavior problems of young children with an intellectual disability: Concurrent and longitudinal relationships in a population-based study

We examined parenting behaviors, and their association with concurrent and later child behavior problems. Children with an intellectual disability (ID) were identified from a UK birth cohort (N  =  516 at age 5). Compared to parents of children without an ID, parents of children with an ID used discipline less frequently, but reported a more negative relationship with their child. Among children with an ID, discipline, and home atmosphere had no long-term association with behavior problems, whereas relationship quality did: closer relationships were associated with fewer concurrent and later child behavior problems. Increased parent-child conflict was associated with greater concurrent and later behavior problems. Parenting programs in ID could target parent-child relationship quality as a potential mediator of behavioral improvements in children.

Human genome studies and intellectual property rights: Whither national interests?

India has been acknowledged as a large reservoir of nature's random mutation, an original 'rich' source of knowledge in the context of international genome studies. Human genome knowledge and the possible understanding of the basis of uniqueness of each individual in chemical terms has presented a number of inescapable challenges to our own jurisprudence philosophies and our ethical sensibilities.

The ownership question of plant gene and genome intellectual properties

The restructuring of the crop agriculture industry over the past two decades has enabled patent holders to exclude, prevent and deter others from using certain research tools and delay or block further follow-on inventions

Loneliness in individuals with intellectual disability

Although some substantial issues exist regarding measurement of loneliness in individuals with intellectual disability, research has generally concluded that members of this group are more likely to (1) appear to others to be lonelier than their typically developing peers and (2) self-report greater loneliness than typically-developing individuals. As examples, in a study by Solish, Perry, and Minnes (2010), parents of children with intellectual disability reported fewer friendships and social activities for their children than parents of typically-developing children. Oates, Bebbington, Bourke, Girdler, and Leonard (2011) found that approximately one-third of the parents in their population study of children with Down syndrome reported that their child had no friends. When questioned directly about the experience of loneliness, only boys with mild intellectual disability reported more loneliness than their same age, typically-developing peers (Williams & Asher, 1992).

Climate change and human rights: Intellectual property challenges and opportunities

Mitigating and adapting to the effects of climate change will require innovation and the development of new technologies. Intellectual property laws have a key part to play in the global transfer of climate technologies. However, failures to properly utilize flexibilities in intellectual property regimes or comply with technology transfer obligations under international climate change agreements calls for a human rights based analysis of climate technology transfer. Climate change is an unprecedented challenge and requires unprecedented strategies. Given the substantial impact of climate change on all of humanity and the ethical imperative to act, a complete rethink of traditional intellectual property approaches is warranted. This report proposes a series of intellectual property law policy options, through a human rights framework, aimed at promoting access to technologies to reduce the human suffering caused by climate change.