World IP Day: how IP can go green

The COVID-19 pandemic may have halted World IP Day’s physical celebrations, but the day to celebrate innovation is still on the minds of IP professionals across the world. David Knight and Heidi Hurdle of Fieldfisher report on how IP rights and systems can support and promote this year’s theme: the development of a green future.

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) introduced the annual World IP Day campaign in 2000, designating April 26 (the day on which the WIPO Convention came into force in 1970) as World IP Day, to raise public awareness about the role that IP rights play in encouraging innovation and creativity and in supporting economic, social and cultural development.  

This year all the physical World IP Day events that were planned have had to be cancelled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the day itself is a Sunday. However, it is hoped that its significance will not go unnoticed and that the substance of this year’s theme “Innovate for a Green Future” looking at how IP rights can support the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy will continue to gain momentum as the weeks, months and years pass.

IP rights might not be the first solution that springs to mind when considering how to tackle the global climate crisis, but they have a key role to play owing to their impact and influence on technological innovation and business, and in turn consumers.