The project began in January 2010 and will run until the Spring of 2011. It is funded by the Leverhulme Trust and is under the directorship of Dr. Frances Pinter, Visiting Fellow at the LSE Global Governance. Dr. Sherry Marcellin has been employed as the Research Officer for the project.
The project examines the extent to which Global Civil Society (GCS) frames, or attempts to frame, the global intellectual property reform agenda. It is primarily concerned with the strategic attempt/s by GCS to alter the terms of the debate away from the prevailing trade discourse, to one on human rights as a means to redress the perceived imbalances in the global access to, and control of, knowledge. It will cross the patent and copyright silos and bring case studies from both to the project.
To address the main question, the project examines two case studies employing interviewing as its main method:
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Public Health and Access to Medicines
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Challenges to limitations of access to knowledge and culture via digital means
Project aims:
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conduct a mapping exercise of GCS actors involved in the global IPR reform movement. This will cover the actors' funding sources, technical expertise, cross-issue involvement, cross-membership participation, board memberships, etc;
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gather information on the activities and thought processes of GCS actors involved in the IPR reform movement;
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examine how they interact with and influence each other;
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uncover how they perceive the impact of their work;
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get a sense of how others in the IPR reform community (including developing countries and international organisations) perceive the efforts of those in the GCS community;
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understand how the digital revolution has made some instruments of the global IPR regime obsolete, and how this is directing the work programme of GCS.
Project rationale
The project was conceived as an investigative response to the recent spate in activity by members of GCS in their attempt to redress what they perceive as imbalances in the access to, and control of, knowledge. It is driven by the relative dearth in comparative research that examines how GCS actors are structured and work with each other on issues of IP reform.
The project will advance the understanding of how GCS, and the broad range of philanthropic and development organisations that support their activities, influence and shape the GIPRR reform agenda. The project will also discover whether there is a coherent set of messages around the future of IPR that is emerging from the diverse collection of activists. Its findings will be of interest to academics, GCS actors themselves, funders and policy makers.
Intended output
A website will be created for the project and will be linked to LSE Global Governance where the research is being undertaken. In addition to a final report, the results of the study will be written up and submitted to an appropriate peer-reviewed scholarly journal. A seminar will also be offered at the LSE.
Acknowledgements
The project is funded by the Leverhulme Trust and is being undertaken at LSE Global Governance, London School of Economics.
Contact us
Dr. Frances Pinter
Visiting Fellow
LSE Global Governance
Houghton Street
London
WC2A 2AE
E-mail: f.pinter@lse.ac.uk|; frances@pinter.org.uk|
Dr. Sherry Marcellin
Research Officer, Intellectual Property and Global Civil Society
LSE Global Governance
Houghton Street
London
WC2A 2AE
Email: S.S.Marcellin@LSE.ac.uk|; Sherry.Marcellin@Gmail.com|