T.E.K.* P.A.D is an index and search engine of existing Internet-based, public domain documentation concerning indigenous knowledge and plant species uses. TEK*PAD brings together and archives in a single location, various types of public domain data necessary to establish prior art. Data includes taxonomic and other species data, ethnobotanical uses, scientific and medical articles and abstracts, as well as patent applications themselves. It is meant to be used by anyone researching traditional ecological knowledge, including scientists, health professionals, and those involved in the patent application process itself.
The site also contains a “Biopiracy Hot List” listing plants which represent prominent examples of ongoing targeting by western pharmaceutical companies and corporations. Although traditional knowledge inspired the research and development that led to patented compositions and processes using this knowledge, they have been considered sufficiently novel and different from the original product of nature and the traditional method of use to be patentable.