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Poster Presentations
Pierluigi Bozzi
Dr. Pierluigi Bozzi holds a BA in Law (University of Rome "La Sapienza"), a Masters Degree in Ecology, and a Doctorate in Economics (PhD programme "Institutions, Environment and Policies for the Economic Development", dissertation: "Traditional Knowledge and Genetic Resources: the Integration between 'Social Capital' and 'Natural Capital', An Institutional Economics Perspective"). As an institutional environmental economist, he is deeply interested in and involved with trans-disciplinary (ecological-social-economic-legal) issues. His research centres on interactions between biodiversity conservation, traditional knowledge, science and institutional economics context, access to genetic resources and benefit sharing, knowledge systems and innovation systems in traditional societies, implications of biotechnology and intellectual property in non-industrialised countries, collective rights, farmers''rights, and institutional innovations at local and international levels. He is currently scientific assistant at the Chair of Environmental Economics, Faculty of Economics, University of Rome "La Sapienza", and is also an attorney, defending in Higher law courts (environmental law, intellectual property law, licensing agreements, competition policy law, unfair trade practices). His recent work includes "Farmers' Rights: Informal Innovations, Science and Market. An Institutional Economics Perspective", paper presented at the International Conference on "Measures to Protect and Promote Farmers' Rights (art. 9, ITPGRFA). From local to international experiences" (IAO - Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs); "Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Science: an Institutional Economics Framework for Analysing Policy and Defining Rights and Rules", paper presented at "Access and Benefit Sharing Capacity Building Workshop for Eastern and South Africa" (GTZ-IBCD). He is a member of UNESCO Centre of Florence and, as a member (Environmental Expert) of Italian delegation, has attended several national and international congresses.
At Patenting Lives, Dr Bozzie will make a poster presentation on his research into the knowledge economy and technological innovation, and the relationship to the land. The meeting between the knowledge economy and the "economy of the living", the high rates of technological innovation tied to a "return" to exploitation of the "land" (i.e. genetic resources) factor of production for the generation of high profits, the absolutely novelty of a natural resource - the genetic material - as an independent source of production and reproduction of information-knowledge-innovation, have given rise to a meeting/clash between the scientific-industrialised world and traditional rural societies - between different modes of production, consumption and investment. The market can operate if there are defined and assigned property rights on the goods subject to exchange. If in nature the genetic resources, the container of knowledge, are freely available, the regime of intellectual property rights becomes the instrument that makes possible the fragmentation, the appropriation and the exchange. In this way distortions are introduced into the local markets, and these have repercussions on the use of natural resources - on those practices and traditional knowledge which have enabled human systems and natural systems to co-evolve. The dynamics of genetic evolution, which is strictly tied to the socio-economic structure of the locality, are influenced negatively. In these cases the same rules of the market economy prescribe a correction of the inefficiency by means of institutional economic policy intervention.
In his poster presentation, Dr Bozzi will consider the following questions in particular:
- Which economic-institutional scenario is to be promoted - that of the market and private property rights, that of the state and public rights, or that of "informal" institutions and collective action, of the commons, collective rights and customary laws?
- How to benefit from the advancement of "formal science" in connection with the evolution of the "traditional informal science" of rural systems?
- How should rights and contractual regulations be defined in order to enable unified policies for conservation and science to be formulated, in such a way as to recognize and promote the value of "local integrated systems"of biodiversity and knowledge?
Abel Kehinde
ASSU, Department of International Relations, OAU
Abel Kehinde is a senior lecturer at Obafemi Awolowo University, OAU, Ife, where he has been working for the past 9 years. Prior to moving into academia, Abel worked with the Institute of Foreign Affairs for 4 years.
Abel will presenting his research into topical issues in public policy analysis and will be examining the fundamentals of public policy formulation, implementation, and evaluation. The work attempts to describe the nature of public policy, the actors in the political system, its relationship with politics, and the implications thereof for policy matters. In its discussion of public budgeting and public policy, Abel's research looks at problems of public policy making in Nigeria and suggests remedies.
Abel's second area of research that he will be exhibiting examines international cooperation in development, and involves a case study of African development. Development is an everyday language to which all communities aspire and which invokes the indices of development (such as gross domestic product, average net income) in that language. A starting-point is to regard "development" as a change or a transformation into a better state. In the past it was possible to look to "development" and the narrow emphasis placed on the content of GDP as well as indicators of quality of life. Such social and economic indicators include infant mortality, employment opportunity, life expectancy, real income, housing, water, electricity, education, inflation etc. Development in essence has to with the qualitative improvement of the life of the society. The area of interest in this research will be limited to the study of the group support to regional members, based on dates and information obtained from the African Community especially in Nigeria.
Ismaila Mohammed
BSc Sociology (Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Kaduna State); BSc Economics (Federal University of Technology, Akuru Ondo State); MSc (University of Ibandan Oyo State)
Ismaila researches into issues of industrialisation and rural development, ethno-religious conflicts, and questions of leadership. At Patenting Lives, he will be presenting on particular areas of work into rural development and the capacity of communities in African development. The research notes that after achieving political independence, most African countries embarked on programs of rapid economic and social development with the expectation that this would lead to the quick transformation of the communities themselves. Ismaila's work is principally concerned with this process of "rural development," that is, the efforts provided for the advancement of such communities. Generally, whenever this term is used, the major emphasis is on activities which aim to promote the improvement of the basic living conditions of rural communities. Furthermore, this also includes the provision of non-material needs, such as education, roads, water, electricity, telecommunications, and the improvement of other areas of production.
A major component of rural development, beyond farming activities and badly needed by the rural areas, are the manufacturing industries. This is because of the numerous roles which industries can play in the rural areas. In the first place, industry can generate employment opportunities in the rural areas, thus reducing the problems associated with unemployment, which affect rural communities. Secondly, industries have great potential for stimulating growth in agricultural production in the rural areas in which they are established, thereby raising the standard of living by raising the income of the farmers. Thirdly, industries can stimulate a rapid transition to a more monetarised and modernised economy through their direct and indirect relationship with primary production.
The aims and objectives of this research are:
1. To identify the impact of industrialisation on rural development;
2. To examine the socio-economic contribution of industry to the lives of rural dwellers.
This research used a sample size of the population as a sub-set judiciously selected to represent the entire population. Questionnaires were administered and focus group discussions as well as in-depth interviews of the rural dwellers were undertaken. The outcomes of this research will be presented.
Queen Mary Intellectual Property Research Institute
University of London
John Vane Science Building
Charterhouse Square
London EC1M 6BQ
United Kingdom
