Entry 2. April 22, 2006
Nguni Cattle Hides
The workshops with the Nguni cattle farmers went really well. Both Merida and I were nervous; I hardly slept the night before, but the workshop ended up exceeding our expectations. We had farmers, breeders, hide producers and government representatives in attendance – a pretty diverse mix.
The Nguni Cattle hide is typically used for interior decorating - such as rugs, couches, and leather products - but it also holds a significant place in indigenous culture. Each year, the King from each tribe selects a hide pattern and wears it as his royal robe for the year. Aside from the fact that all of the cattle belong to the Nguni people, the hides have some unique qualities. The symmetry of their patterns is preferred by designers and decorators; their hide is pliable and easy to stretch, while retaining strength and resistance to ticks; finally, they have a very high amount of hair threads per square centimeter – a reflection of their high quality.
We started with a "You Already Know about Intellectual Property" exercise, where we had logos such as Coke and Nike, patented inventions from South Africa, and popular books located at different stations around the room. We had individuals answer some questions and tell everyone about the symbols they recognized. This simple activity showed the farmers that, without realizing, they already understood the fundamentals of intellectual property rights.
Then, we applied their knowledge to the marketing of cattle hides. Working as a team, the farmers defined their values and goals, and then we presented them with some intellectual property options. At the end of the day, we launched nine month project where we will work with the farmers to conduct a more in-depth study of breeding, production, and intellectual property options.
Entry 3. May 1, 2006
Tea Time in Neiwoudville
The next leg of the trip was truly inspiring, but you wouldn't have guessed it from how it started. Leaving Bloemfontien after the Nguni workshop, we drove five hours to a Bed and Breakfast, caught a few hours of sleep, and hit the road again by 3 a.m. We had to rush, because our workshop in Neiwoudwville was scheduled for 9 the next morning.
We nearly drove right through the town. Neiwoudville is a tiny, one-road village in the middle of nowhere. It was raining all morning, making it even more dreary to our eyes. Apparently, it NEVER rains in the region; this was the first rain in 8 months! Just our luck.
When we arrived, no one was at the Rooibos Tea Farmer coop. A volunteer eventually showed up, and told us that – if they came at all – the farmers would not arrive until 11. Apparently, all the dirt roads had been turned to mud because of the rain. Gradually, people started to trickle in, but most of them worked for organizations in the region, and were not the farmers we'd hoped to meet.
When by 11 only a few farmers had arrived, Merida and I decided to start the workshop and run it as "Train the Trainer" program. The idea was to train workers from other organizations so that they could train farmers in the field. We started with a mix of Afrikaans and English, and it was going well when, all of the sudden, a group of farmers walked into the door! They were the small-scale Rooibos farmers we'd been waiting for! The journey had taken them hours on dirt roads, but they made it! We immediately shifted into speaking in Afrikaans and it was FANTASTIC! Farmers were so interested, and debated the ideas of intellectual property so energetically that we worked right through lunch.
The most exciting part was when we encouraged the farmers to "define knowledge claims" – or the kinds of understanding that they should protect. They were completely engaged in explaining their work on the farm, and the unique processes that make their small-scale rooibos tea production one-of-a-kind.
Then we asked "who are the knowledge holders and stakeholders"? They stood up enthusiastically and shouted "WE ARE!!" We had them define their cultural values and goals. Their goals, unlike what I would have thought, did not include profit! They simply wanted to ensure sustainability of the rooibos crop, and preserve their knowledge of making tea without it being pirated by someone else. In the end, we came up with five potential intellectual property options to protect their wishes. Then the farmers developed a list of pros and cons for each and agreed upon a set of recommendations.
I've never had an experience like it. Witnessing the enthusiasm of the farmers as they started to understand how they could use intellectual property rights to protect was truly inspiring, most of all because it will allow them to protect the resources and knowledge that are most important to them. Everyone left the workshop with concrete plans of action, as well as plan for the future of the project.
We learned two things that day:
- With the right support, people with any level of education can understand how to use intellectual property rights to protect their knowledge and resources, and
- Participatory education is the key to true, community-based development… it works!
Entry 4. May 4, 2006
Down South with Honeybush Tea
Today I arrived in George, in South Africa's Western Cape, for a training with honeybush tea farmers. Honeybush tea is a native plant from South African which gives off the naturally sweet taste of honey when brewed.
The first part of the training went well, but the really interesting part happened when we divided the group into different stakeholders to identify their values and goals. Three groups formed: researchers, commercial farmers and small-scale farmers. Interestingly enough, although we were talking about the same resource in South Africa, each group had a distinct set of goals.
Researchers were mostly interested in investigating honeybush to test some of its supposed medicinal properties. Commercial producers wanted to make their businesses more profitable. And small-scale tea farmers were concerned with maintaining a way of supporting themselves and guarding the cultural significance of tea in their communities.
As the different groups discussed their goals, I made a big spreadsheet in the front of the room which featured each group's goals. Seeing the different values up there, one next to the other, forced all of the groups to realize how different their goals were. It also showed researchers and commercial producers that their pursuits did not represent the wishes of local communities.
After this exercise, each group was given several potential intellectual property options that they could use to advance their values. Each group developed a creative way to use these options to promote development in their communities. In the aftermath of the workshop, the farmers agreed to take these plans back to their communities. If the communities want to pursue intellectual property protections, a research team will help them implement them and protect indigenous resources.
Entry 5. May 4, 2006
Conclusions
From these experiences in South Africa, I learned a lot about international development and what it means to fight poverty. Here are some tidbits:
- Global policies, such as the World Trade Organization's intellectual property rights standards, are often developed with the right intentions. But they are not so easily put into practice. It is important to make these laws accessible to everyday people – so that they serve their purpose. As part of this, every effort should be made to inform communities on how they can use laws to their benefit.
- Dialogue is the key to education. Whether it's working with farmers to use intellectual property rights, or teaching American youth about global poverty, we learn by listening as much as by speaking. I feel as though I learned more from the South African farmers than they learned from me. How's that for capacity building?
- Thinking long term is the key to smart development. Fortunately, the project in South Africa has several more stages which will follow up with communities on what we started. We're far from finished.
- Many people underestimate the amount of knowledge in developing countries. If our project is successful, it will be because of the wealth of knowledge of the indigenous communities in South Africa. Because there is so much of value, there is a great deal which needs to be protected. In order to achieve true development, every step must be guided by the values and goals of the local people.
This project is funded by Project DURAS (http://www.duras-project.net/) and implemented with a group of international partners organized through the University of Pretoria, South Africa.
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