(Guest post by Kristi Stathis from Ocean Tomo)
Here’s an opportunity to use your IP skills for global good.
INVENT FOR HUMANITY™ TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER EXCHANGE FAIR
World’s First Transparent Marketplace for Humanitarian Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Licensing
One billion people worldwide lack clean, safe drinking water. More than 2.5 billion people worldwide lack basic sanitation. This deadly combination causes half of the world’s hospitalizations and kills 1.4 million children each year.
These are but two of the monumental challenges facing the 1,400,000,000 people (one in every five people) in the world who live on less than $1.25 a day. In response, thousands of organizations and hundreds of thousands of individuals have organized around the world to seek Appropriate Technology, field-ready sustainable solutions for developing countries. Appropriate Technology exists and can make a clear difference in the lives of millions of people. There are hundreds of organizations standing ready with such technology in hand or financial resources for its acquisition. Unfortunately, matching the right technology to those that need it most and actually executing the necessary transfer and deployment remains a daunting task.
Technology producers, situated largely in developed countries, do not have clear, reliable mechanisms to transfer the production rights for their solutions to developing countries. Instead, technology providers must navigate a patchwork of laws and procedures for transferring invention. The process is long, complicated and expensive. In the end, these challenges overwhelm many innovators who simply abandon the technology transfer process and along with it the possibility of improving the quality of life for those who need it most.
April 26th has been designated “World IP Day” by member states to the World Intellectual Property Organization. The theme for 2011, Designing the Future, provides an ideal platform from which to announce the 2012 Invent for Humanity™ Technology Transfer Exchange Fair. “Invent for Humanity is an event, a marketplace and a community” explains James E. Malackowski, President Elect of the Licensing Executives Society International and creator of the event. It will provide an important point of connection between technology producers and those organizations with active technology needs. It will also ensure that relevant solutions and needs are visible to the policymakers who have the power to address the issues that currently impede efficient technology transfer. And finally, it will ensure that more technologies are deployed for the benefit of mankind.
Invent for Humanity is a two day event in Geneva Switzerland January 24-25, 2012 held concurrently with the Global Technology Impact Forum hosted by the Licensing Executives Society International, Inc. Invent for Humanity will bring together an ecosystem for humanitarian technology transfer. In one venue not only will Needs Organizations and Technology Providers sit across from each other but their interaction will be facilitated by experienced technology transfer professionals. Transferring life-changing appropriate technologies to benefit the developing world.
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