SDG Detail

ANTHRO 756 : Anthropology and Intellectual Property

Postgraduate course

Project description

Examines recent anthropological contributions to debates about intellectual property. These include concepts of ownership, the objectification and appropriation of indigenous knowledge, creativity, bioprospecting, the protection of intangible cultural property, and the effects of global flows of information on persons, privacy and the ownership of ideas.

Year 2022

Location New Zealand

Organization University of Auckland

Project aims

This course will consider anthropological work on property in general and will deal with aspects of intellectual property such as culturally-specific concepts of ownership, ideas of the commons and the public domain, the objectification and appropriation of indigenous heritage, and effects of the internet and global flows of information on persons, privacy and the ownership of ideas. It will end with a consideration of arguments against intellectual property and ideas about alternatives to intellectual property.

Project outcome

By the end of this course, students will be able to: Understand anthropological approaches to property in general and to intellectual property in particular. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3) Understand how personhood is relevant to conceptualisations of property and intellectual property. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3) Understand how anthropological theorising about the various relationships between persons and things is relevant to contemporary debates concerning intellectual property. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3) Understand why intellectual property has become a particularly salient discourse in the last 20 years. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3) Understand how intellectual property claims are being used for cultural, political, and economic purposes. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3) Demonstrate reading, writing, and discussion skills at a level appropriate for postgraduate students. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.1, 5.2, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3)