As my travels as LESI President near an end, I am excited to assist President Elect Kevin Nachtrab and GTIF 2013 Co-Chairs Hector Chagoya (President, LES Mexico) and Martin Schneider (President, LES Switzerland) in planning for the second Global Technology Impact Forum (GTIF) taking place in Geneva, Switzerland, on January 20-22, 2013. This second forum promises to include participants from a large number of LES Societies as a meeting of the LES National President’s Council (NPC) will once again take place immediately prior to the event.
Sponsored by the Licensing Executives Society International (LESI), an association of 32 national and regional societies composed of individual members dedicated to advancing the business of intellectual property globally, GTIF 2013 will address its mission to coordinate and communicate the efforts of leading organizations seeking to further IP licensing and the transfer of technology in order to spur economic growth for societal benefit. Last year, more than 25 global non-profits and NGOs participated in the inaugural event, which proved to be a powerful collaboration between renowned IP professionals, senior leaders in science and government, and LES members.
Topics to be discussed at GTIF 2013 include:
- The role of IP and licensing in shaping developing economies.
- Structuring public/private partnerships for promoting technology transfer and capacity building.
- The role of IP and licensing in assuring access to essential medicines.
- Reports on governmental efforts to build regional IP financial centers and establish sovereign wealth patent acquisition funds.
The official registration website will open just prior to the LES USA & Canada annual meeting beginning on October 14-17, 2012 in Toronto. An advanced registration fee for GTIF 2013 has been set at $995.
GTIF 2013 will be held at the headquarters of the World Intellectual Property Organization. Due to limited capacity for the 2013 event, those wishing to reserve a spot are encouraged to sign up on a pre-registration waitlist by sending an email to Joenn Khoo at [email protected]
More details will follow shortly. I look forward to seeing you in Toronto and Geneva!
James E. Malackowski
LESI President