The heads of five international organizations joined an international campaign this week to galvanize public support for a successful outcome to UN-sponsored climate change negotiations by signing a global petition addressed to world leaders.
Representatives of WIPO member states, reading-impaired organizations, publishers, and a technology consortium met on Monday, July 13, 2009 to discuss how the intellectual property system can best meet the needs of visually impaired people by improving timely access to copyright-protected content.
The role of intellectual property (IP) in promoting the development and diffusion of green technologies to combat climate change was at the heart of discussions on Monday July 13, 2009 at a two-day international conference on IP and public policy issues organized by WIPO.
The WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) concluded its 14th session on July 3, 2009 after an in-depth discussion on the best way to advance the Committee’s future work.
WIPO’s Standing Committee on Trademarks, Industrial Designs and Geographical Indications (SCT), meeting from June 22 to 26, 2009, examined areas of possible convergence in industrial design law and practice, as well as questions relating to grounds for refusal of all types of marks and technical and procedural aspects of the registration of certification and collective marks.
Intellectual property and how it relates to public policy issues, such as health, the environment and food security, will be the focus of discussions at an international conference organized by WIPO on July 13 and 14, 2009 in Geneva.
A key WIPO decision-making body, meeting on June 15-16, 2009, endorsed proposals by Director General Francis Gurry for a new senior management team, consisting of four Deputy Directors General (DDG) and three Assistant Directors General (ADG).
A special task force set up by WIPO Director General Francis Gurry to monitor the progression of influenza A (H1N1), to keep staff informed of the status of the pandemic and to take appropriate measures to ensure the safety of all those associated with WIPO’s operations met on June 12, 2009 to take stock of latest developments.
The third meeting of the Global Network of Intellectual Property (IP) Academies (GNIPA) meeting in Munich, Germany, on June 9 and 10, 2009, at the European Patent Office (EPO), agreed to further intensify cooperation among its members. The event provided an opportunity for representatives of IP academies and training and research institutes to review progress on a common action plan, to exchange practical experiences and to share best practices with a view to enhancing IP education and training, and the management of IP Academies.
A gathering of senior policy makers and intellectual property (IP) administrators from 36 African countries meeting in Pretoria, South Africa on May 26 and 27, 2009, to examine the importance of IP as a catalyst for economic and commercial development, marked the launch of a Japanese-financed program to promote the use of IP in Africa and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).