Natural Justice is working with partners in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to develop the theory and practice of biocultural community protocols. At the same time, we are developing regional programmes to ground the concept of biocultural rights, which will include working on legal empowerment with Indigenous peoples and local communities as well as providing additional training to lawyers.

Natural Justice also worked successfully in the negotiations of the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing to ensure that community protocols are referenced in the final text. The recognition of community protocols in international law marks a turning point in the approach’s development. For the first time, governments are required to support the development of community protocols, with an emphasis on gender representation, and to take them into consideration in matters relating to traditional knowledge. We are working to ensure that national implementation of the Nagoya Protocol upholds the highest international standards and in accordance with local values and customary laws and procedures.