Protection of traditional knowledge is necessary to solve for existential risks

While a sui generis system of protection and databases allow nation-states to exercise some order of protection, those systems still require TK to become perceptible under the Western constructs of law and understanding. A sui generis system of protection of TK within the scope of global IP needs definitions, objectives, identification of the subject matter, legality of material, registrations, exceptions and limitations, and duration of protection to be clearly defined in order to be legitimized and enforceable. While IPR aims to commodify certain parts of TK, specifically the parts that can be traded and sold, a sui generis system of protection may be able to protect TK that exists outside of the Western construct of IP. A sui generis system of protection is used in protecting intangible property and granting rights to those who have original claim to knowledge, or proprietary rights. The sui generis system of protection of TK may provide exclusive rights in an attempt to provide fairness and equity from neo-liberal market forces to primarily Indigenous peoples []. The holistic and unique character of TK under a sui generis system allows for specialized measures or laws to be created exclusively to address the special characteristics of specific subject matter.

In addition to the variety of legal constructions for the protection of TK is the development and expansion of national and an international database. However, this presents a variety of issues in many countries of the Global South as they do not have intensive internal technological and scientific capacity to adapt and transform knowledge production to fit within what would be protected under current IPR frameworks []. Additional issues arise where TK-holders and the State intersect, as well as between TK-holders and researchers.

Currently, preservation of TK within IPR is largely driven by concerns of the rapid loss of this knowledge and cultural diversity. TK helps build resilient social-ecological systems. Biocultural diversity, with its interconnected links between biological, cultural, and linguistic diversity, can be an asset to climate change adaptation strategies, as this diversity has developed over generations of practical experience []. The understanding that the disappearance of TK or understanding not being passed to future generations is another aspect that requires urgent attention. With modernization and the influence of western education, support for TK is weakened, as absorption and assimilation into western culture is prevalent []. The need to protect TK is demonstrated in its ability to enable local food and health security, biodiversity conservation, climate change adaptation, and the mitigation, treatment, and cures for diseases. This type of knowledge presents solutions to a plethora of global issues which calls for the preservation and protection of TK on a global scale within global systems.