WIPO GREEN Welcomes New Member: Konica Minolta

December 5, 2019

As negotiators meet in Madrid for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 25), WIPO GREEN is pleased to welcome Japan-based Konica Minolta as the latest member of the online platform for technology exchange to address climate change.

WIPO GREEN connects providers and seekers of environmentally friendly technologies – and Konica Minolta’s membership highlights the ongoing support in the businesses community for collaboration on environmental action. WIPO GREEN’s 94 partners and users from around the world have so far contributed over 3,000 technologies and needs to the WIPO GREEN database.

“WIPO GREEN is not just a marketplace for technology exchange, but it has a high philosophy of supporting global efforts against climate change,” said Motohiro Makino, General Manager of Konica Minolta’s Corporate Intellectual Property Division. “We strongly sympathize with WIPO GREEN’s philosophy, because we hope to use intellectual property not only for the benefit of our business but also for solving social issues.”

Pursuing a sustainable society also leads to enhanced sustainability for companies. We are convinced that resolving environmental and social issues will create growth opportunities for us. We believe that opening up the technology and intellectual property that we have built up, and allowing global partners and society to use it through WIPO GREEN will be meaningful in our efforts to help resolve environmental, energy and other global social issues.

Motohiro Makino, Konica Minolta

Konica Minolta – with 44,360 employees and sales and services in 150 countries – said in a news release that it has registered in the WIPO GREEN database patents related to film mirrors for concentrating solar power generation and dye sensitized solar cells that can generate power even under low illuminance, which the company has been researching as next-generation types of energy. To date, the company has uploaded 24 green technologies to the WIPO GREEN online platform.

“WIPO GREEN warmly welcomes Konica Minolta as our newest partner company. The company brings a wide array of green technologies and know-how to an ever-growing community of businesses and organizations seeking to leverage intellectual property (IP) and innovation to increase the transfer and use of environmentally friendly solutions,” said Amy Dietterich, Director of WIPO’s Global Challenges Division that includes WIPO GREEN.

This is another sign of our partners’ dedication to using international collaboration to solve our common challenges related to climate change.

Amy Dietterich, WIPO

The announcement comes as negotiators continue working at COP 25, the biggest gathering of policy makers, governmental officials, environmental professionals and scientists working together to address climate change. On the ground in Madrid, Spain, WIPO GREEN is hosting an event on innovation, IP and climate-smart agriculture, and is contributing to other official UN events.

About WIPO GREEN

WIPO GREEN is a global marketplace for sustainable technology, supporting global efforts to address climate change. Through its online database and regional activities, WIPO GREEN connects green tech seekers and providers in order to catalyze green innovation and accelerate green tech transfer and diffusion.

WIPO GREEN at COP 25

Apart from contributions to the agendas and discussions during the official UN side events, WIPO GREEN organizes a panel discussion "Accelerating Innovation and Technology Transfer in Support of Climate Smart Agriculture: What Role for Intellectual Property Rights?" together with the Instituto Nacional de Propiedad Industrial, Chile.

When: December 7, 2019, 4 p.m.
Where: Inter-American Development Bank’s pavilion at the COP25

Panelists

  • Ms. Loreto Bresky, Instituto Nacional de Propiedad Industrial (INAPI), Chile
  • Mr. Patricio Parra, Chile Wine Association
  • Dr. Peter Oksen, WIPO GREEN
  • Dr. Federico Villatico Campbell, Climate Technology Centre & Network (CTCN)