Supporting Women, Youth and the Arts in Ukraine
August 27, 2024
The IP Academy of Ukraine, which is a WIPO intellectual property training institution (IPTI) established with the Ukrainian National Office for Intellectual Property and Innovation (UANIPIO), has been operating since 2019. The women-led IP Academy of Ukraine has supported more than 10,730 beneficiaries so far through a wide range of initiatives aimed at meeting national intellectual property (IP) training and skills-building needs, including through some joint cooperation projects developed with the WIPO Academy.
Ukrainian youth are forging a sustainable future with IP
From March to June 2024, the IP Academy of Ukraine launched a nation-wide project to mark World IP Day which was themed “IP and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Building our common future with innovation and creativity”. The three-month long “Creative Eco-Initiatives: How ideas change the world?” project was dedicated to educating youth between the ages of 8 and 18 about the role of IP in sustainable development. The project featured summer camps; educational resources such as lessons, books, and games; and a publication filled with stories and artistic pieces developed by youth inspired by a sustainable future.
Over 9,000 young people across Ukraine benefitted from the project and got to develop critical and creative thinking skills about environmental solutions through the lens of IP. In particular, they learned:
- how to collaboratively create original works related to sustainability while achieving consensus and understanding among co-authors;
- how to secure rights to their own eco-friendly innovations and develop a monetization strategy to support their green initiatives; and
- how to obtain patents for technical solutions and innovations that can protect the environment, highlighting the role of IP in ecological advancements.
Participating in the National "Creative Eco-Initiatives: How ideas change the world?" project, dedicated to World Intellectual Property (IP) Day 2024, has been an enlightening experience for me as someone deeply passionate about ecology. The campaign not only sparked my interest but also deepened my understanding of how creative ideas and IP can transform our world for the better. Throughout the campaign, I participated in insightful lessons and workshops that greatly expanded my understanding of IP and its vital role in environmental initiatives. Learning about innovative solutions to ecological challenges deeply inspired me. This newfound knowledge and enthusiasm motivated me to create my own work—a fairy tale about two teenagers who were initially indifferent to nature and environmental issues. I am grateful for the opportunity to be part of such impactful projects and look forward to continuing my journey in exploring the intersection of creativity, innovation, and IP.
Anastasia Boldina (12-years-old), Middle School Student from Odesa, Ukraine
Bringing IP skills to the creative industries
The IP Academy of Ukraine also implemented an online project from January to November 2023 to empower those in creative industries with the knowledge and skills needed to ensure compliance with IP laws. The IP Academy of Ukraine worked hand-in-hand with the Department of Economic Creative Sectors Development of UANIPIO to teach 565 professionals working across the creative industries about the practical steps and considerations they should take when it comes to copyright and related rights. The project entitled “34 Poles of Creativity: Copyright in the creative industries” included six workshops dedicated to different industries ranging from museums, to libraries, theater and jewelry design. The industry-specific workshops were held to offer a safe space for the professionals to raise their most pressing questions and challenges in relation to their line of work and IP. The workshops concluded with tailored practical checklists with actionable solutions for each industry, which participants can use and apply in real-life to:
- draft contracts for artworks, exhibits, and souvenirs;
- develop commercial strategies for visual arts;
- navigate the legal aspects of assigning rights to works created by museums, libraries and theater employees;
- understand the regulation of using copyrighted materials in theatrical productions ;
- apply legal principles to photographic and video content in museums; and
- register industrial designs in the jewelry industry.
The workshop dedicated to museum workers was extremely timely and important for Ukrainian museums. The issue of the status of digital analogs made from objects in museums was raised which was very helpful as in many cases museums do not know to handle these items, considering them as property that the museum can use at its discretion. The clearly defined issues were explained with helpful examples and relevant solutions, and for the first time the concept of a “work made for hire” was explained to museum workers.
The checklists we got after the workshop were very useful and I have already used them to develop sample contracts for the Taras Shevchenko National Museum.
Yuliya Shilenko, Chief Curator of the Taras Shevchenko National Museum in Kyiv, Ukraine
Copyright as a tool for empowering women in the arts
To empower women and artists, the IP Academy of Ukraine launched an “IP Capacity Building Project for Ukrainian Women in the Visual Arts” project in 2023, with the support of the WIPO Academy’s IPTIs Program. The project consisted of a two-day online training program on copyright for women involved in visual arts across the country. The training program was particularly catered to those in the fine arts and photography, and focused on how to use the IP system to drive creative careers and businesses forward.
The 50 women creators and artists learned about commercialization instruments, the challenges and opportunities of applying copyright on the internet and social media, and how to request for the removal of publications of their art and creative work from social media accounts that have been distributed without their consent. The training also included resource materials, such as infographics, for the creators to use as a reference tool in the future.
Participating in the two-day online training on copyright has been a transformative experience for me as an artist from Ukraine because it provided me with invaluable insights into the role of IP in protecting and advancing my creative work. Before this training, I had a limited understanding of how IP could be leveraged to safeguard my art and support my business. This training provided me with essential knowledge on how to protect my work through copyright, which has given me greater confidence in sharing my art. I am very grateful for this training because by understanding the importance of IP has allowed me to explore new business opportunities, such as licensing my designs and collaborating with other creatives, without fear of losing control over my creations. This training has not only safeguarded my art, enabling me to embrace my creativity further, but also helped me expand my business and reach a broader audience by leveraging IP.
Hanna Tretiakova, Ukrainian Painter
More opportunities in the future
The IP Academy of Ukraine is currently preparing more training opportunities in the second half of 2024 for businesses, folk craft entrepreneurs, universities, students, and research institutions which are promoted on the IPTIs’ Events Calendar for those wishing to register.