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21 April 2020

The World Intellectual Property Day, annually is celebrated around the world on April 26th, is always dedicated to a certain theme. Theme-focused activities are organised which help attract attention of the world community to the issues in question the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) faces, tell the public of what intellectual property is and show how its system promotes progress from art to innovative technologies. This year the World IP Day is celebrated as “Innovate for a Green Future” with a focus on demonstrating the key role of innovations in developing “green” economy.

The way intellectual property rights promote transition to sustainable and low-carbon economy.

There is a growing concern in the whole world about environmental protection. People, businesses and governments launch various initiatives aimed at solving the problem of climate change. For example, the European commission set the 2050 goal to decrease carbon emissions to zero in the European community while some cities and regions try to be even more robust. It is Copenhagen that targeted the goal of becoming a zero-CO2 emissions capital by 2025.

What we learnt at the United Nations Climate Change Conferences which took place in Madrid in December 2019 is that Greenland ice cover melts seven times higher than in 1990s and water shortage problems pose a menace to the quarter of the world’s population. According to NASA data there were the warmest five years of our planet life during the last decade.

Upon entering the new decade the impact of climate changes are seen across the globe. It is nearly daily what we learn about such climate-elated extreme phenomena as hurricanes, floods, droughts and natural fires as well as devastating consequences of these facts. They already are perhaps the results of climate change and we expect them to emerge more frequently and intensify in future.

Finding solutions to the global climate crisis is an extremely difficult task. The contribution to reach the common aim must be shared equally between each and every one of us. It will be a solution to this problem crisis and a chance to building “green” future.

We become fully aware that partial problem solving is dependent on technologies. It once again emphasises the need for doubling efforts aimed at creating sustainable national innovative systems and providing access to efficient national systems of IP. These in turn should promote elaboration and introducing technologies, inventing products and services necessary for our moving towards the “green” future.

It is beyond doubt that low-carbon future is a complicated and multifaceted task. However, there is joint experience, inventiveness and creativity due to which we will be able to find new more effective ways of shaping “green” future with IP as a key and of assistance in moving towards it.


The main predisposition of IP rights is to promote innovation and creativity whereas inventors and authors would get fair reward for their work, could earn their living by means of inventions and works as well as protect company’s reputation embedded in brands.

There are various rights to protect various types of intellectual property such as inventions (patents), brands (trademarks and geographical indications), industrial designs (rights or patents for industrial designs) and creative works such as films, television programmes, songs and theatrical performances about protecting environment (copyright and related rights).

IP rights prevent such infringements as copying or using the IP by others without permission. It enables the IP rights holders to get income by collecting fees for using their IP. Such generated revenue helps further finance new scientific, technology and development research as well as promote businesses growth and employment. Perspective of financial reward gives incentives to business to further stimulate investment into innovative solutions, creation of works, branded commodities and services which can bring great use to us and environment.

IP rights are multifunctional. Companies can get certain return on investment from time, energy and resources input into eco-friendly products. Besides they can apply these innovative solutions in non-commercial activities upon their own will or introduce it into public domain.

Provided the inventor wants to keep his/her invention as a public good, protected IP rights are to prevent its misuse by a third-party for commercial goals without the inventor’s prior consent.

IP rights are as a rule granted for a limited period of time and on certain terms. Besides there are rules letting the use of certain types of IP without the rights holder’s prior consent, although such cases are a few. This mechanism maintains the balance between the innovators’ and authors’ interests on the one hand and public aspirations on the other, so that intellectual property remains a true public good.

It is economically justified to do everything possible in building “green” future, and promoting awareness about it is one way how individuals’ behaviour could be quickly modified and new “green” technologies would be widely introduced.

While companies expect that IP rights ensure return on invested time, energy and resources into eco-friendly products, these rights also enable innovators and entrepreneurs to apply various innovative solutions on non-commercially grounds or introduce it into public domain.

IP rights promote innovations and discovery of creative potential in all spheres of activities including designing of eco-friendly technologies, products and services.

World Intellectual Property Day 2020 is dedicated to the key role of innovations and rights which ensures reaching “green” future. It is entitled to attract attention to such issues as role of various IP rights in stimulating innovative activities, promotion of outputs commercialisation and giving consumers a chance to use them.

It is our level of interest, decisions we take, products we buy, research we finance, companies we support or rules and laws we elaborate and adopt that determine how “green” our future will look. However, due to innovative thinking and strategic use of IP it is within our reach to provide for environmentally sustainable development.

Source of references: WIPO 

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