摘要：The suitability of mainstream forms of intellectual property rights to indigenous knowledge has recently been the subject of some debate. Efforts to reconcile the Western concept of intellectual property with indigenous knowledge have generally not taken into account the underlying epistemic schism between indigenous knowledge and Western scientific forms. The latter constitutes the main focus of intellectual property, especially the patent system, but as knowledge assumes increasing importance in indigenous quest for selfdetermination, cultural survival and economic empowerment, the gulf between indigenous and Western scientific knowledge assumes a new meaning. In this book, Chidi Oguamanam argues that the crisis of legitimacy that indigenous knowledge poses for the intellectual property system call for a rethinking of the intellectual property jurisprudence and its conceptual framework in a cross-cultural direction.
