In depth

Challenges of communal copyright: Traditional and indigenous knowledge

Posted Wed 2 Jun 2010 - 00:20 | 11,169 views
Copyright and patents legislation has spread rapidly over the past century. This has a particular impact on indigenous women and the holders of traditional knowledge, as copyright ignores the possibility that knowledge can be held communally and has definitions of knowledge that exclude information held in a spiritual context. In this article, GenderIT writer Sonia Randhawa examines how women's…

In depth

University women struggle for knowledge access in Africa

Posted Wed 2 Jun 2010 - 00:20 | 7,032 views
The future female leaders of Africa are up against major barriers to knowledge access, which could mean lost opportunities in university learning and teaching the state-of-the-art research most necessary for academic success. Online academic journals, and university textbooks are a few of the important resources that are part of this access to knowledge, which is pertinent particularly at the…

In depth

Do copyrights and patents limit access to HIV/AIDS knowledge and treatment in Africa?

Posted Wed 2 Jun 2010 - 00:20 | 7,006 views
The UNAIDS 2008 report confirms that Sub-Saharan Africa continues to be the region most seriously affected by AIDS in the world. As part of the response to this pandemic, access to information and knowledge on HIV/AIDS is vital, as disease prevention depends heavily on information. In a world where there is a price to pay for access to knowledge, to what extent do patents and copyrights limit…

In depth

Cybercrime laws are not enough, there is also a need for education

Posted Wed 2 Jun 2010 - 00:20 | 9,482 views
The different forms of online violence against women should be covered by criminal legislation to provide adequate protection and redress. However, laws are not enough. There is also a need for education, prevention, the development of defence mechanisms and a legal system that is capable of addressing these issues without subjecting the victims to further victimisation. Carlos Gregorio, a…

In depth

Integration of ICTs in the Health System: Basic Services and Risks to Privacy

Posted Wed 2 Jun 2010 - 00:20 | 6,993 views
How can a health care system respond to the gender-specificities in terms of providing accurate and timely information…

In depth

A Women's 'Commons'? An Exploratory Dialogue on the Potential of the Knowledge Commons for Women

Posted Wed 2 Jun 2010 - 00:19 | 8,235 views
The idea of the 'commons' has been contestedly understood as being both a principle of understanding content and creative products, and a community that supports the sharing of information and creative content. It is also directly linked with subverting current Intellectual Property Rights paradigms, where ownership and control of information, knowledge, and content has been commodified. So what…

Publication

African Copyright & Access to Knowledge Project

Posted Tue 1 Jun 2010 - 23:38 | 5,676 views
The African Copyright…

Publication

Intellectual PROPERTY RIGHTS in Africa

Posted Tue 1 Jun 2010 - 23:37 | 5,357 views
Articles on intellectual property rights in Africa have been brought together by the International Environmental Law Research Centre. The site includes papers translated from Arabic, and topics covered include traditional knowledge, farmers rights, patents and comparisons between intellectual property regimes in different parts of Africa.

Publication

Gender dimensions of intellectual property and traditional medical knowledge

Posted Tue 1 Jun 2010 - 23:37 | 5,570 views
This paper examines the discussion on intellectual property rights (IP) for traditional knowledge (TK) in medicine from a gender perspective. It argues that a gender analysis of these issues adds to the understanding of how trade decisions can have important and unintended impacts on the lives of disempowered people.

Publication

Domestic Violence Organizations Online : Risks, Ethical Dilemmas, and Liability Issues

Posted Tue 1 Jun 2010 - 23:26 | 3,272 views
The paper outlines the risk and liability issues related to use of the Internet and suggests risk-management guidelines to protect organizations from liability.