| More
Information |
|
|
|
|
| Category |
News & views |
|
|
| Details |
Technology Commons: A Lateral Learning Workshop
Copying, improvement and blending of local innovations with one’s own ideas is quite common at grassroots level. In fact, a process like this has been at the heart of culture of innovation at community level. Honey Bee has always supported the IPR rights of the grassroots knowledge holders and innovators. At the same time, it is true that majority of the innovators want to share their knowledge openly with others. But some may not. There are tensions at times. Riya Sinha as a part of her
Ph.D thesis has studied the innovation by Mansukhbhai Jagani involving an attachment of a ploughing machine (multi purpose tool bar, also called as Saanti). She has also looked at lot of imitations and improvements in this motorcycle driven Saanti. NIF and GIAN took the initiative to organize a workshop to test the ideas emerging from the original innovator as well as those who copied and improvised Mansukhbhai’s design.
About 30 innovators, users and another 20 stakeholders met at Community Science Centre, Rajkot to discuss these issues. Many improvisers brought their devices for the lateral learning workshop. Shri Anil Kamdhar, Trustee of Community Science Centre hosted the workshop and offered the Centre as a place for continuing dialogue on policy and practice. Innovators critiqued each other’s design, offered solutions and appreciated innovations. The entire exchange took place in a very collegial environment with no inhibition about one’s proprietary interest in the technology. It is this culture of communitarian spirit that Honey Bee Network wants to nurture. At the same time, the creativity of individuals and innovators' networks has to be recognized. The concept of ‘technology commons’ was proposed for debate. It implies that there should be no restriction on people to people learning, imitation and copying, so long as the technology improves, the sharing is mutual and the farmers and other consumers are able to get better solutions at lower cost. A community of these improvisers will constitute the concept of ‘technology commons’. They will collectively own the IPRs and none of them can individually license it to a third party. Within themselves, no licensing is required. But for the firms and other third party formal organizations, a commercial license would be required. They can not take the technology evolved by the individual or group members of ‘technology commons’ without any consideration. Most of the innovators welcomed the idea and respected the innovation by Mansukhbhai which has made substantial improvement in productivity. A joint patent application would be filed by GIAN with the help of SRISTI for protecting the ‘technology commons’. Under MVIF (Micro Venture Innovation Fund), NIF would provide risk capital to the commons for improving their productivity. Time will tell how this concept evolves and meets the goals of communitarian spirit and IPR protection.
A Veterinary Workshop in Bihar
A two-day state level workshop of herbal veterinary healers was organized in June in Champaran district of Bihar. Over 30 healers shared their knowledge with each other and also learnt about NIF activity.
Dialogue on Innovation with Chief Ministers: Grassroots Inno-vations Reach the Top
Dr Vijay Kelkar, Chairperson, 13th Finance Commission, is the member of the Governing Council of NIF and has been responsible during his days in Finance Ministry for setting up of NIF. During the interactions of Finance Commission with the Chief Ministers about various matters, he felt that a photo essay in the form of a coffee table book based on innovations and traditional knowledge from and for each state would constitute a noble gift to each Chief Minister. The first of the series was presented to the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh followed by Haryana. |
|
|
| Volume No. |
Honey Bee 19(3): 21, 2008 |
