Rachel Wynberg

Rachel P. Wynberg is a South African biodiversity researcher and natural scientist who is a professor at the department of Environmental and Geography Sciences at the University of Cape Town.

Life and work Education At the University of Cape Town, Wynberg earned a BSc in zoology, MSc in marine biology and a MPhil in environmental science. She went on to obtain a PhD in environmental science at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland. Her work concerns the taking and using of biological entities from indigenous people without proper acknowledgement or compensation. Specifically, "Biopiracy is the misappropriation of traditional knowledge and biodiversity through the patent system... It's been prevalent for centuries in Southern Africa".

One instance that she has cited concerned the San people.An African example of biopiracy is the case of the Hoodia succulent plant, which grows in the Kalahari Desert. For generations the San people have used it as an appetite and thirst suppressant. But in 1996 the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) isolated the hunger-suppressing chemical component in Hoodia and patented it. The CSIR licensed the UK-based Phytopharm for further development. None of the projected royalties were earmarked for the San. In fact, a Phytopharm spokesperson said that the CSIR had led him to believe that the San people were "extinct". In a victory against biopiracy, the CSIR eventually signed an agreement to recognise and reward the San as holders of traditional knowledge. Wynberg chaired part of the First International Meeting Against Biopiracy, held at the French National Assembly in Paris and attended by representatives from 15 countries including indigenous groups, attorneys, academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The goal of the meeting was to explore the complexities of biopiracy and the threat it poses to cultural and biological diversity. The meeting was hosted by a group of French non-governmental organisations, under the leadership of the former first lady of France, Danielle Mitterrand.

Selected publications

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