PhD student David Jefferson’s research, is interested in how the legal evolution in Ecuador is representative of a conceptual shift in IP law away from a narrow orientation of privatization and economic growth, towards the utilization of intellectual property (IP) to support communitarian ends.
In 2015 David received a highly prestigious Fulbright Scholarship to conduct fieldwork in Ecuador. This research has focused on the reconceptualization of IP law in Ecuador and the process of participatory lawmaking, in particular, the pre-legislative consultation with peoples and nationalities on traditional knowledge.
In this video interview (in Spanish) with the Ecuadorean National IP Institute, David gives insight on the participatory process for construction of the WITS Code, and the importance of the system model of knowledge and IP management path in the code, and suggests this could be a model for other countries.
