A community approach to sharing traditional knowledge for non-commercial research

The document argues that traditional knowledge (TK) is often viewed as a commodity in Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) agreements, which can erode the biocultural relationships and spiritual values of indigenous and local communities (ILCs). To counter this, the authors propose a 'TK Commons'—a system where non-commercial users (such as researchers and students) access knowledge via licenses based on the community's 'biospiritual virtues'. This framework emphasizes reciprocity, non-appropriation, and the continuous growth of a knowledge community rather than individual ownership. The report details a potential online licensing system to manage these interactions, ensure enduring recognition of source communities, and facilitate the flow of new research back to the ILCs.

• Traditional healers in Bushbuckridge, South Africa, developed a biocultural community protocol in August 2009 to regulate access to collectively held traditional knowledge based on 'biospiritual virtues' rather than absolute proprietary rights.
• The 'TK Commons' is conceptualized as an expanded community that includes non-traditional users who agree to use traditional knowledge in accordance with the community's biospiritual virtues and share any resulting knowledge increases.
• A TK Commons license differs from the public domain by requiring reciprocity, attribution, and re-licensing on the same terms to prevent the appropriation of knowledge by proprietary models.
• Proposed general characteristics for TK Commons licenses include the requirement that users do not profit from new developments, provide enduring recognition of the source, and ensure the knowledge is not used to harm the environment.
• The report suggests an online licensing system where users agree to 'share alike' terms, and research outputs are placed back into the TK Commons database to be reviewed by 'knowledge trustees' for the benefit of the original communities.
• The authors argue that the TK Commons supports the 'in situ conservation' goals of Article 8(j) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) by protecting the biocultural way of life rather than focusing solely on the commercial sale of knowledge.

APA

Abrell, E., Bavikatte, K. S., Cocchiaro, G., Jonas, H., & Rens, A. (2009). A community approach to sharing traditional knowledge for non-commercial research. Natural Justice. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Imagining-a-Traditional-Knowledge-Commons.pdf

Chicago

Abrell, Elan, Kabir Sanjay Bavikatte, Gino Cocchiaro, Harry Jonas, and Andrew Rens. A community approach to sharing traditional knowledge for non-commercial research. Natural Justice, 2009. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Imagining-a-Traditional-Knowledge-Commons.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Abrell |first1=Elan |last2=Bavikatte |first2=Kabir Sanjay |last3=Cocchiaro |first3=Gino |last4=Jonas |first4=Harry |last5=Rens |first5=Andrew |title=A community approach to sharing traditional knowledge for non-commercial research |publisher=Natural Justice |date=October 2009 |url=https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Imagining-a-Traditional-Knowledge-Commons.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{abrell2009community, author = {Abrell, Elan and Bavikatte, Kabir Sanjay and Cocchiaro, Gino and Jonas, Harry and Rens, Andrew}, title = {{A community approach to sharing traditional knowledge for non-commercial research}}, institution = {Natural Justice}, year = {2009}, month = oct, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Imagining-a-Traditional-Knowledge-Commons.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }