Protecting Soft Adaptation Technologies Under Intellectual Property Rights Systems

Abstract

Technology can be of both ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ in nature. While both kinds of technologies are applicable for climate change mitigation technologies, the latter kind is more appropriate for climate change adaptation. This is because unlike mitigation technologies, most of the adaptation methods involve some form of technology that broadly cannot be considered as mere product or equipment. Instead, these technologies are broadly considered as various forms of ‘knowledge’ or ‘know-how’. While the mostly ‘product’ or ‘tool’ based ‘hard’ kinds of mitigation technologies are protected by intellectual property rights (IPRs) and brings financial benefit to the IPRs holders, typically ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ based ‘soft’ kinds of adaptation technologies are vastly considered as ‘public good’, which are not protected by IPRs, nor bring any financial profit for the knowledge generators or the original knowledge holders. This paper assesses whether these soft kind of ‘knowledge’ or ‘know-how’ climate change adaptation technologies can be brought under modern IPRs system as such considered as commercially valuable. The study suggests some modification of existing system, where necessary. Finally, the study suggests introducing a ‘sui generis’ protection for community knowledge or traditional knowledge adaptation technologies.