TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND PATENT PROTECTION: CONFLICTING VIEWS ON INTERNATIONAL PATENT STANDARDS.

The article presents a comparative analysis between the U.S. and Europe, and the international legal regulations regarding patent laws and traditional knowledge. It highlights the need to recognize the rights of indigenous peoples that will pave way for the economic development of the poor while granting an accessibility to valuable natural resources in the third world. It also suggests on the implementation of a new structure for international intellectual property rights law in an advent of political solidarity and careful consideration from industrialized and developing countries.