WIPO-WTO Colloquium for IP Teachers
November 22, 2022
The annual Colloquium for Teachers of Intellectual Property, jointly organized by WIPO and the World Trade Organization (WTO), was held in-person in Geneva, Switzerland at both WIPO and WTO headquarters from November 7 to 18, 2022.
Mr. Hasan Kleib, Deputy Director General of WIPO and Mr. Antony Taubman, Director of the Intellectual Property, Government Procurement and Competition Division of WTO jointly gave the welcoming address to participants on November 7, 2022.
What is the WIPO-WTO Colloquium?
The Colloquium is a unique opportunity for intellectual property (IP) teachers and researchers to enhance their knowledge on new emerging IP issues under debate at the international level, to share experiences and challenges in IP teaching, and to learn more about the latest IP teaching and research methodologies and trends.
Twenty-three participants, each representing a different developing country, least developed country or country in transition benefitted from practical lectures by WIPO and WTO officials, leading academics in the field and professionals from the private sector, such as a patent attorney from Nestlé and partners from international law firms. Topics covered during the Colloquium included the intersection of IP and:
- Socio-economic development;
- Competition policy;
- Jurisprudence;
- Public health;
- Management and public policy; and
- Emerging technologies: Challenges and opportunities in the digital environment.
A key element of the Colloquium is the roundtable discussion on IP teaching and research in developing countries which focuses on experience sharing. Participants also benefit from the opportunity to present their academic research papers on current policies and legal issues, which will be published in the next edition of the WIPO-WTO Colloquium Papers.
What our participants are saying?
The WIPO-WTO Colloquium has been a fantastic experience. It was a pleasure to meet new colleagues from universities all over the world and discuss not only new developments in IP, but also pedagogic strategies for teaching. As IP issues becomes more complex, these inter-disciplinary and international perspectives become even more important than ever.
Bryan Khan, Trinidad and Tobago
The Colloquium was very enlightening and provided a great networking opportunity with fellow participants and experts! We got to learn about the best IP practices being offered by the WIPO-WTO; emerging international trends in IP rights; teaching-learning methodology, dynamics of IP rights policy; and the creation of sustainable progressive IP ecosystem. It allowed us to foster and continue dialogue and cooperation on IP teaching and research in the most meaningful way.
Smita Sahu, India