Reclaiming the Commons: In Defense of Biodiversity and Traditional Knowledge [J0370]

2020 PB in Gift-Worthy condition. Authored by world renowned activist and environmental leader Vandana Shiva, Reclaiming the Commons presents the history of the struggle to defend biodiversity and traditional practices against corporate biopiracy and details efforts to realize legal rights for Mother Earth and achieve the vision of the universal commons and Earth as Family. Corporate war on nature and people through patents and corporate Intellectual Property Rights has unleashed an epidemic of biopiracy resulting in important legal battles fighting efforts to patent the rights to many plants, including basmati, neem, and wheat. The author presents details of the specific attempts made by corporations to secure these patents and the legal actions taken to fight them. The book goes beyond the legal struggle to position the necessary solutions to corporate control including the exploring the Rights of Nature and proposing a framework for a Universal Declaration of the Rights of Mother Earth. It is the first detailed legal history of the international and national laws related to biodiversity and Intellectual Property Rights.

From recent-ish Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "An interesting read on agriculture and how it is changing with multinational corporations coming in to turn the basics of life into profits."; "Does such a spectacular job of highlighting why Indigenous knowledge is crucial and how it's been exploited over time."; "Totally essential reading for anyone interested to know what cutting edge and grounded in the soil, seeds, and very essence of what environmentalism is about."; "Vandana Shiva fights to win--and she wins a lot. Bringing together diverse coalitions of people to counter corporate greed, ignorance, and destruction, she has fought a series of uphill battles on a national and international level to keep Indian farming and farmers from being ruined by agrochemical companies. And she offers a truly human, regenerative vision for the future of agriculture, grounded in healthy soil and strong communities."