Agricultural seeds are one of the most striking examples of the profound interdependence between humans and non-humans. They embody both human ingenuity and natural processes, merging these forces in ways that have shaped agriculture for millennia. However, in the 1960s, plant-specific intellectual property regimes, once confined to a few countries, began to internationalize. This transformation popularized the idea that humans actively shape and subdue agricultural plants. It also fueled the commercialization of seeds, often severing their connection to local growing conditions and surrounding ecosystems. This study explores various legal strategies used by states, international agricultural research institutions, and indigenous and local communities to limit the negative impacts of this institutionalization of human control over agricultural plants. These strategies would benefit from a legal environment that promotes alternative frameworks for property rights and fosters a more integrated understanding between subject and object.
