Intellectual Property Training Supports Innovation

As the region’s governments look to grow the competitiveness of their productive sectors, there is an increasing need to establish and promote public policies and programs that encourage research, development and marketing of technology-based goods and services. In support of these efforts, the OAS-SEDI liaised with recognized institutions to carry out the 2nd Edition of the Academy on Technology Transfer and Commercialization for the Americas held December 2 to 12 in the city of La Paz Baja California Sur, Mexico.

Historically, the Latin American and Caribbean region performs poorly in comparative international indexes on competitiveness, innovation, productivity, and economic and human development. This regional shortcoming highlights challenges in areas commonly used in these indexes, including the number of granted patents and trademarks, transactions related to technology transfers, and the percentage of knowledge and innovation in products and services in international trade flows. In particular, these challenges reflect problems with national innovation systems and the subsequent low innovative capacity of firms, most of which are Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

It is in this context, that 40 professionals from the Offices of Technology Transfer (OTT) and other entities responsible for implementing policies and programs aimed at supporting high-impact or technological base MSMEs from 14 countries in the region were trained in Mexico. The advanced two-week course was taught by expert instructors with practical experience in the development, management, transfer and commercialization of technology, and was modeled on the Academy of Licensing and Intellectual Property of the University of California, Davis, that since 2011 has welcomed students from Latin America and the Caribbean, thanks to support from the OAS professional development scholarship program.

Following a hands-on methodology, participants worked in teams that at the end of the course presented a technology that, with expert assistance, went through the whole process of technology transfer: from the conception of the idea to reaching the market, following the steps for intellectual property protection in strategic markets, transfer and commercialization of technology, as well as business development and access to external markets strategies. The program also included visits to two companies considered success stories in the generation of value-added, as partners of the technology transfer process led by Mexico’s Northwest Center for Biological Research (CIBNOR).

Coordinators on this second edition of the Academy were the Department of Economic Development of the OAS-SEDI, the National Council of Science and Technology of Mexico (CONACYT), the Center for Biological Research of the Northwest (CIBNOR) and the University of California, Davis-PIPRA. Financial support came through the Government of Canada through the Department of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development (DFATD) and CONACYT, with additional support from the Ministry of Economy of Mexico, the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the REDOTT of Mexico and the OAS’ Innovanet.

During 2015, the OAS will continue to promote the continuous interaction among participants and other innovation agents in the region through the online platform of the Innovanet Network, and continued coordination with the technology transfer offices in the Americas, in order to share experiences and programs related to innovation, intellectual property, public-private partnerships, technology transfer, licensing and incubation, especially in schemes to support innovative and high impact MSMEs. In addition, the OAS and the other organizers expect to deepen their partnership and provide new editions of the Academy during the year.