WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources, and Associated Traditional Knowledge: Promoting Transparency and Inclusivity in the Patent System

• Pages: 34-38
• Date: 01 June 2025
• Published date: 01 June 2025
• Author: Daniel Mendoza,Gary Pulsinelli

LANDSLIDE June/July 2025

Published in Landslide, Volume 17, Number 4, 2025. © 2025 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion

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34

WIPO Treaty on Intellectual

Property, Genetic Resources,

and Traditional Knowledge

Promoting Transparency and Inclusivity in the Patent System

Daniel Mendoza and Gary Pulsinelli

The commercialization of Indigenous art, crafts, and knowl-

edge has surged alongside rapid technological advancements,

amplifying the need for stronger protections and fair

compensation for Indigenous peoples and local communities.

1

As

these cultural assets become increasingly integrated into global

markets, the demand for legal frameworks to safeguard them has

grown signif‌icantly.

Indigenous designs are often appropriated in fashion, art, and

other consumer products without compensation, while tradi-

tional medicinal knowledge is used in pharmaceuticals without

proper acknowledgment or equitable benef‌it-sharing.2 Despite

the expanding commercial use of these elements, Indigenous

communities often see little economic gain, while corporations

reap substantial prof‌its.

3

This imbalance exposes systemic f‌laws

in the current economic structure and highlights the limitations

of intellectual property (IP) laws, which fail to accommodate the

collective nature of Indigenous traditional knowledge.4

Traditional knowledge is inherently communal and cumula-

tive, yet existing IP frameworks are designed to protect individual

innovations, overlooking the collective rights and cultural signif‌i-

cance of these resources. This gap in protection leaves Indigenous

communities vulnerable to exploitation. Various IP approaches

have emerged to address these issues, each oering distinct solu-

tions, but also presenting limitations.

Daniel Mendoza is a recent JD graduate from UT Winston

College of Law, with advanced degrees in education and a

background in biology. He has experience in biotechnology

patent prosecution, legal research, and innovation policy, and

currently supports faculty and public research at an academic

law library. He can be reached at daniel.mendoza@lmunet.edu.

Gary Pulsinelli, PhD, is a law professor at UT Winston College of

Law, with a background in molecular biology and a JD from UC

Berkeley, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif. He has

experience in biotechnology patent prosecution and previously

clerked for Judge S. Jay Plager on the U.S. Court of Appeals for

the Federal Circuit. He can be reached at gpulsine@utk.edu.

Image: Getty Images/HJBC