- Do you agree with the guiding principles indicated above?
Yes.
2. Should the objectives include mainstreaming Indigenous Peoples food and knowledge systems, and lessons learned from them, for the benefit of all, or solely for the benefit of Indigenous Peoples as rights holders?
Indigenous knowledge preserves the rich history and identity of indigenous groups by acting as a storehouse of traditional knowledge and cultural assets in addition to providing insightful information that can help address societal challenges and development issues. Furthermore, indigenous sources offer important local knowledge that can be applied to a variety of fields, including environmental management, agriculture, and medicine. Therefore, mainstreaming Indigenous Peoples' food and knowledge systems should recognize Indigenous Peoples as rights holders while the knowledge systems and lessons learned should benefit of all.
3. What are the challenges related to Free, Prior and Informed Consent and Access and Benefit Sharing when widely promoting and/or mainstreaming Indigenous Peoples food and knowledge systems?
One of the main challenges is that of equitable access, revenue and benefit sharing. Kenya, has been actively involved in implementing Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) measures, one of the main components of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), an international agreement that Kenya ratified in 1992. ABS seeks to guarantee that the advantages of using genetic resources and traditional knowledge are distributed fairly and equally between those who supply them and those who utilize them. The Kenya Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), which describes the nation's commitment to ABS principles, serves as the main document that governs ABS. Furthermore, a legislative foundation for the use of ABS in Kenya is provided by the Biodiversity Conservation and Management Act of 2013. The National ABS Committee, which is in charge of managing ABS matters, is established by this statute. The ABS method in Kenya also views local and indigenous groups as important stakeholders, and their traditional knowledge is respected and preserved. The ABS regulatory framework places emphasis on the importance of users seeking Prior informed concent (PIC) from the provider community or individual before using genetic resources or traditional knowledge. In addition, Benefit Sharing Agreements (BSAs) must be negotiated between providers and users of traditional knowledge or genetic resources. These agreements specify the manner in which advantages - such as monetary gains, technological transfer, and capacity-building- will be distributed.
4. How can the report ensure the inclusion of marginalized groups, sustainability, and protection against commercialization risks for Indigenous Peoples' food and knowledge systems?
By considering frameworks such as Kenya Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) that ensures that the users of traditional knowledge negotiate Benefit Sharing Agreements (BSAs) with providers and define how benefits will be shared, including financial benefits, technology transfer, and capacity-building and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) that places revenue-sharing models into place to guarantee that Indigenous People receive benefits from their traditional food systems and cultural assets.
5. How should oral knowledge and traditions be documented and referenced in the development of the report?
Documenting traditional knowledge (TK) is of importance since it ensures the social, cultural, and economic interests of local communities and indigenous peoples. It is also a mechanism that helps prevent TK loss, preserve TK over time, facilitate benefit sharing between TK holders and users, and ultimately shield TK from unauthorized usage. However, despite the fact that documentation is one way of protection, there are concerns that it may not guarantee protection of TK, since there are chances and concerns that communities may lose control by making TK widely available and compromise its secret. Therefore, any documentation should only take place in the context of intellectual property.
One method of documentation may be writing down medicinal preparations by the Maasai, traditional methods of treatment, or food preservation methods by various tribes in Kenya.
6. What dimensions linked to Indigenous Peoples’ agency, e.g., in governance issues, could be addressed?
Ownership retention while allowing third parties to gather TK or access it through a registration or database.
Legal safeguards for Indigenous knowledge, including capacity building, privacy, and knowledge sovereignty.
7. None
8. References
Ethical principles for climate change: reports of the World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology (COMEST) of UNESCO (2010-2015)
World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology
SHS-2016/WS/3. 91 p.
Documenting Traditional Knowledge – A Toolkit. WIPO 2017
Access to Information Act, No. 31 of 2016, Laws of Kenya.
Carolina Zambrano-Barragán, ‘Decision Making and Climate Change Uncertainty: Setting the Foundations for Informed and Consistent Strategic Decisions’ (World Resources Institute, 27 June 2013) https://www.wri.org/ourwork/project/world-resources-report/decision-mak…;
9. What best practices, ethical standards, and strategies for addressing climate change should be highlighted in the report?
The UNESCO Declaration of Ethical Principles promotes "prevention of harm" as one of the six key ethical precepts about climate change. Prevention of harm, anticipate, avoid, or minimize harm, wherever it might emerge, from climate change, as well as from climate mitigation and adaptation policies and actions.
Another ethical guideline pertains to "scientific knowledge and integrity in decision-making", equity and justice, solidarity and sustainable development. It states that "the best available knowledge from the natural and social sciences should be the basis and guide for decisions." "Actions which help protect and maintain the independence of science and the integrity of the scientific process".
10. Which best practices or strategies to promote cross-cultural understanding should be highlighted in the report?
According to the 2010 Kenyan Constitution, culture is the cornerstone of the country and the collective civilization of the Kenyan people. As a result, it requires the State to, among other things, support all forms of national and cultural expression through literature, the arts, traditional festivals, science, communication, information, mass media, publications, libraries, and other cultural heritage; it also acknowledges the contribution of science and indigenous technologies to the country's development. Furthermore, the Access to Information Act emphasizes that in order for communities to make educated decisions, information that impacts the public interest must be made available. In order to help communities, become more resilient and adjust to climate change and other environmental changes, decision-making processes should concentrate on providing them with the appropriate knowledge, incentives, resources, and skills.
Prof. Lizzy Mwamburi