Vandana Shiva

Patents also reflect the arrogance of western civilization, as in the case of patents on neem. The properties of neem that make it useful as a biopesticide have been known and utilized in India for centuries. They were not an invention of the scientists, who have been granted patents for neem biopesticide. Such intellectual property rights are in fact intellectual piracy rights. To avoid such piracy, it is essential that the collective innovation of Third World communities be recognized.