Marie Michael Library

Biodiversity and culture: Exploring community protocols, rights and consent

Ashley, Holly; Kenton, Nicole; Milligan, Angela

This issue explores two participatory tools that indigenous peoples and local communities can use to defend their rights to biocultural heritage: i) Community protocols in which communities set out their rights to natural resources and land, as recognised in customary, national and international laws; and ii) Free, prior informed consent (FPIC) processes, in which communities decide whether or not to allow projects affecting their land or resources to go ahead, and on what terms.  The issue reviews the experiences of communities in Asia, Latin America and Africa in developing and using these tools.  It also looks at government experiences of establishing processes for FPIC and benefit-sharing.