From the geopolitics of biodiversity to the geopolitics of seeds: between access, use and control of seeds

Abstract

The objective of this article is to conceptualize and analyze the geopolitics of biodiversity and, in particular, the geopolitics of seeds, describing each of the actors that interact and compete with each other in relation to access, use and control of natural resources. , particularly in the context of seeds. The tactics used by actors in the geopolitics of seeds to intervene scientifically and extractively in areas rich in biodiversity in order to privatize and commercialize the products obtained from genetic resources are also detailed. Likewise, it highlights how the ancestral knowledge of indigenous communities in nations such as Colombia has become a form of opposition to intellectual property mechanisms such as patents and plant breeder’s rights. In methodological terms, a mixed approach was used to highlight the deductive conditions provided by documents from primary, secondary and tertiary sources, as well as the statistical results from the review of databases and institutional reports. The main result of this article was to contribute to academic and social discussions about the concept of geopolitics as a way of understanding international dynamics related to access, use and control of seeds.