Copyright and Intellectual Property

The following three definitions are quoted from the Aboriginal Languages K-10 syllabus (2003) glossary:

Copyright: “the legal protection provided to the creators of original works and makers of sound recordings and films, preventing unauthorised copying or exploitation by others”.

Intellectual property: “non-material assets such as forms of cultural expression that belong to a particular individual or community. Intellectual property rights refers to the bundle of rights that the law grants to individuals for the protection of creative intellectual, scientific and industrial activity, such as inventions. Such rights are for the protection of economic interest in novel, inventive and/or creative effort. See also indigenous cultural and intellectual property”.

Indigenous cultural and intellectual property: “includes objects, sites, cultural knowledge, arts and cultural expression, that have been transmitted or continue to be transmitted through generations as belonging to a particular indigenous group or indigenous people as a whole or their territory”.

The cultural content and Aboriginal language used in each of the sample units of work are the intellectual property of the associated local Aboriginal communities.

Acknowledgements
This project was funded by the Australian Government Department of Education, Science and Training as a quality teacher initiative under the Australian Government Quality Teacher Programme.

Disclaimer
The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views of the Australian Government Department of Education, Science and Training.