WIPO and the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has shared some news in connection with International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, celebrated on 9 August every year.

Winners of the WIPO Short Story Competition on Indigenous Ingenuity and Creativity

The winners of the WIPO Short Story Competition on Indigenous Ingenuity and Creativity have been announced. The Competition was addressed to members of indigenous peoples and local communities to share their stories about their traditional knowledge (TK) and traditional cultural expressions (TECs).

The winners are Ms Fanny Vergara (from the Montubian people, Ecuador) and Ms Sibelis Villazón (from the Kankuamo people, Colombia). The prizes provide both financial and technical support to implement IP-related projects concerning the winning stories.

2021-2022 WIPO program on IP for indigenous women

WIPO is calling for applications for its Training, Mentoring and Matchmaking Program on Intellectual Property for Women Entrepreneurs from Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.

The first program in this series took place in 2019 (as reported here), and was attended by 24 women from, inter alia, Mexico, Russian Federation, Papua New Guinea, Cameroon, New Caledonia, Norway, Peru, Australia, and Brazil.

The program is addressed to women in light of the role they often play as custodians of TK and TECs, as well as the challenges faced concerning unequal access to education, funding and support services.

Requirements

Women entrepreneurs from indigenous peoples and local communities who are planning or have already started a project involving TK and/or TCEs may apply, including but not limited to, “artisans, designers, performing artists, researchers, healers, or small-scale farmers”.

Up to 25 women from the seven geo-cultural regions recognized by the United Nations Permanent Forum will be selected; if possible, at least two applicants per region: Africa; Arctic; Asia; Central and South America and the Caribbean; Eastern Europe, Russian Federation, Central Asia, and Transcaucasia; North America; and the Pacific.

The participants must be able to communicate in English, Spanish or Russian.

The program

The program consists of two phases. The training phase will be held online from 11 to 22 October 2021 and involve a practical workshop. There, the participants will learn the basics of the IP system with special emphasis on the “potential value (and challenges) that intellectual property can bring in support of” their projects. Networking opportunities to “further develop their projects and businesses” will also be available during this program phase.

The mentoring and matchmaking phase will occur during 2022, principally through video chat, email, and phone. In this second phase, the participants will receive support from their mentors concerning the IP aspects for implementing their projects.

Upon completion of the second phase, the participants will inform WIPO about the implementation of their projects and reply to a brief questionnaire.

Upon request, WIPO may cover the participants’ costs for attending the program (e.g., internet connectivity) and offer a “limited financial contribution ... in support of the intellectual property components of the participants’ projects or businesses”.

It is hoped that the program will enable sustainable projects in the participants’ communities and reduce the inequalities of gender and poverty by encouraging innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship of women from indigenous peoples and local communities.

In this sense, the program will contribute to the implementation of some of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as gender equality (5); decent work and economic growth (8); poverty eradication (1), reduced inequalities (10), and industry, innovation, and infrastructure (9).

Candidates should apply here before 6 September 2021. More information here.

Credits:

The first image is by LoggaWiggler from Pixabay.

The second mage is by ALAN DE LA CRUZ from Pixabay.

The third mage is by Pexels from Pixabay.