ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates a case of collective political agency in relation to the stewardship of traditional medicinal (TM) knowledge, in which a network of about 80 Brazilian local initiatives of the Cerrado (the Brazilian savannah) are struggling for the right to exercise their medicinal practices. 2 The main issue of this study is the question of how TM is maintained over time, shared and protected. The context of TM is addressed by discussing the shortcomings of regulatory frameworks in the areas of health, environmental protection and access and benefit sharing (ABS). In health policy there is an incompatibility between the legal call for valuing TK, anchored in various international laws (Dutfield 2006), and the shift of TM practices into illegality by health surveillance regulations. Regarding environmental protection, we learn from the case study that counteracting the strong biodiversity loss requires the engagement of indigenous and local communities (ILCs), but this aim can hardly be achieved without the support of policies and partners. Regarding the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol 3 (hereafter the Protocol/NP) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), TM is challenging the ABS regime insofar as, depending on the design of national regulatory frameworks, a good share of the drug market could fall under the benefit-sharing obligation, and compliance with ABS laws is still to be achieved. 4
